THE 



ARTYRS AND HEROES 



OF 



ILLl INTOIS 



IN THK GRKAT REBELLION. 



BTOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 



l/(\\W\l Lu) *^a(VM«K ^o^.-vid. 



Dulce d dfcorum &.( propatria mori. 



ILLUSTRATED WITH PORTRAITS. 






vO>^. 



(■ H I C A a : 'X 

FROM THE PRESS OK ,T. BARNET, BOOK AND JOB PRI.NTER, 

No. inl Lake Street. 

18 6 5. 






.6^, 

"*•;— 



Entered accordijig to Act of Congress, in the year ista, V>y James Barn kt, in tlie Clerk": 
Office of the District Conrt of tlie United States for the Northern District of Illinois. 





THIS 

VOLUME 

IS DIGDIC^TEID 

TO THE LOVALANOTHS 

ii BRAVE. cBQ^%^^ 







iJ^ 



BY THE EDITOR. 

In the following pages wc can only give a few notices of that 
mighty host of brave men from Illinois whose blood has watered the 
battle conrses of the late Rebellion in our land, and whose lives have 
been laid down as a holy sacrifice on the altar of their country. 

If, in the fulness of grief, relatives or friends have eniliellished 
the oliltuaries with seeming superfluity or endearment, we would 
not seek to rob them of such garniture ; for it is fitting that the 
loved ones of their bosom should be fully decked out in the robes 
of moral heroism when "sleeping the sleep that knows no waking." 
What nobleness — what bravery — what pangs and sufferings endured 
for our sakes — none can truly tell. Thej- have triumphed, and 
Providence smiles upon the victors. 

Our task may not yet be finished, if the friends or relatives of 
those who are xinnotieed will gather up the records of their patriotic 
dead and transmit them to the undersigned. 

James B a r n e t. 



lift HI/ Dead, i/rl Sj'caketh. 



With us their names shall live 
Through long succeeding years, 

Embalmed with all our hearts can give. 
Our praises and our tears." 



" Eest on your battle-fields, ye brave, 
Let the pines murmur o'er your grave, 
Your dirge be in the moaning wave — 
We call you back no more! 

O, there was mourning when ye fell, 
In your own vales a deep-tone knell, 
An agony — a wild farewell, 

That haunts us evermore. 

Kest with your still and solemn fame! 
The hills keep record of your name. 
And never can a touch of shame 
Darken the buried brow." 



" Their memory is heard upon the mountain, 
Their memory sparkles in the fountain; 
The smallest rill, the mightiest river. 
Rolls, mingling with their fame forever.-' 



C N T E N T S. 



Tho names with asterisks (*) indicate portraits accompanying sketches. 



Name. Kank. Eegiment, etc. Page. 

♦Lincoln, Abraliam I'resideut U. S Pre fir, i-xvi 

Adams, Robert A Lieutenant 93d Infantry 120 

Aplington, Zenas Major 7tli Cavalry 19 

Apthorp, George Henry Lieutenant 14th U. S. C. Infantry 198 

Austin, Abraham Harrison. ..Private 104th Infantry 104 

Beals, Jedediah Lieutenant 61st " 53 

Blanchard, Jonathan D Private 100th " 261 

Bowen, Rodney S Major 100th " 23S 

*Bross, John A Lieutenant Colonel 29th U. S. C. Infantry 201 

*Bryant, Julian E Colonel 4Cth " " 241 

Buck, Henry A Lieutenant 51st Infantry 128 

Bushuell, Douglas R Major 13th " 132 

*Capron, Horace, jr Lieutenant 14th Cavalry 191 

*Chandler, George W Lieutenant Colonel SSth Infantry 146 

Chandler, Knowlton H Captain 19th " 167 

*Clark, Alpheus Major 8th Cavalry 33 

Clark, Daniel Newton Lieutenant 15th Infantry 118 

*Coatsworth, Geoi-ge Surgeon SSth " 217 

Conner, Charles H Private 39th " 257 

Crawford, E. A Sergeant 3Gth " 204 

*Davis, Redeck Weed ^McKee.. Corporal 77th " 89 

Denison, Charles Edward Captain ISth U.S. Infantry 17 

Eame?, Charles A Lieutenant 32d Infantry lol 

I'.dgar, John Boyd I'rivate 36th " 206 

Earn.sworth, Elon J Brigadier General 41 

Fowler, Daniel II Private 105th Infantry 261 

Fowler, Ferdinand F " " " 261 

(.ireathouse, Lucion Colonel 48th " 177 

Hall, Henry Ware Adjutant 51st " 169 

Harmon, Oscar F Colonel 12oth " 172 

Hegans, Nelson Corporal 61st " 250 

Hudson, Oscar M Sergeant G4th " 250 

*James, Edward Arthur Lieutenant 2d Light Artillery 85 

Johnston, Robert A Lieutenant 4th U. S. C. H. A 209 

Kenney, Stephen C Private 100th Infantry 260 



CONTENTS. 



Nimio. liiink. Regiment, etc. ruci". 

Kitlstoii, John Cori.oial 124tli Infantry 189 

*Kiuzie, John Harris Master Gunboat, "Mound City"... 36 

♦Lester, Thomas T Captain .Jlst Infantry 251 

*Looniis, lifcuben Lieutenant Colonel 6th Cavalry 70 

McClintock, Hiram Captain r27th Infantry 122 

McClintock, William Cori)oral " " 124 

Jleacham, Henry Goodrich... Lieutenant 88th " 55 

«.MedilI, William H Major 8th Cavalry 57 

Miller, .Silas Colonel 30th Infantry.. l.J8 

Mitcliel, Noah Private 12th Cavalry 259 

*Mudd. John J Colonel 2d •' 211 

Mullif,'an, Jame.s A Colonel 23d Infantry 183 

Ornisby, Jesse Harrison Cor]»oral 42d " 138 

I'uice, William Delano Lieutenant 53d " 22 

Ransom, Thos. E. G Brigadier General 232 

Roberts, George W Colonel 42d Infantry 110 

Rutishauser, Karl A Captain 58th '' 218 

( Andrew ¥.. ) 
.Samson Family ] Kdwin 8... J Privates 77th " 131 

( Hamilton... ) 

•f^cott. Joseph R Colonel 19th " 29 

.SlK'pIey, Charles II Captain ItHli " 139 

timith, John (J Cajitain Stli Cavalry 114 

.Smith, Melancthon Colonel 45th Infantry 46 

Stewart, Alexander Lieutenant 12th Cavalry 245 

"fhonipson, John A Captain 18th U. S. Infantry 9 

Tucker, Lansing B Captain 69th Infantry 98 

Ward, Guy Carlton Captain 12th '• 93 

Weaver, Abram Private SSth " 2.59 

Webb, Lysander R Lieutenant Colonel 77tli " 142 

Woodruff, Joseph Captain 39th " 125 

Wood, Wellington Lieutenant 19th ' 105 

Wright, Joseph C Lieutenant Colonel 72d " 50 

York. John Lieutenant 32d '' 175 




-^\^S!«5SkSs^ 



A B K A H A M 1 . 1 N ( ' O I^ N , 



w 

" Honor and shame from no condition rise; 
Act well youb part— there all the honor lies." 

Abraham Lincoln having been called from amongst us to 
occupy the exalted position which he filled so worthily, and 
with whose sledge-hammer of duty and principle, toil and 
honesty, the Rebellion received its heaviest blows until it col- 
lapsed, Illinois claims him as a martyr and a hero — one who 
suffered for his heroism, and who fell in the hour of victory. 

The sixteenth President of the United States was the son of 
Thomas and Nancy Lincoln, and was born in Hardin (now 
Larue) county, Kentucky, on the 12th of February, 1809. 
When he reached his seventh year, he was sent to a school 
kept by Caleb Hazel, who lived in the neighborhood of his 
father's log cabin, and whose exercises consisted of the two 
fundamental branches — reading and ■writing. Owing to the 
family moving to another State, Abraham had to relinquish 
his practiced studies for a life of hard work on his father's 
farm, a year covering the entire schooling he received. The 
journey from Kentucky to Spencer county, Indiana, he has 
been heard to declare, constituted one of his hardest trials of 
pioneer experience. 

Hardy toil, blended with sport in the woods with his rifle, 
simple but healthy fare, and repose in a loft, beneath the roof 
of the hut, formed the daily routine of outward physical being 
of our hero, and such an existence as imparted vigor and 
strength to his system. 

In the autumn of 1818, he had to mourn the loss of his 
mother, an excellent woman, who had religiously trained him 
in the ways of pleasantness, and moulded her son's impres- 
sible nature in the paths of honesty and wisdom, which gave 
him the grand characteristic title in later years of " Honest 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



Old Abe" — a cognomen that princes might envy, and a like title 
that every virtuous youth should strive to acquire. He never 
afterwards mentioned her name but with the deepest reverence 
— a suggestive fact as to his close adherence to the sacred but 
often-neglected injunction that children should honor their 
parents. 

A year after this bereavement, his father married Mrs. Sally 
Johnston, a Avidow having three children by her first marriage, 
who proved a good and kind mother to her step-son. 

Aside from his outdoor labor, our subject took pride in his 
early studies, and his diligence soon won him the regards of his 
instructors. He was quick to learn, considering his condition, 
and was gifted wuth a retentive memory. Books were eagerly 
sought after, and the getting of them his chief anxiety. His 
father aided him greatly, however, in obtaining those he asked 
for when desirable, and endeavored always to procure them for 
the use of his son. 

In this way (says Mr. Raymond) he became acquainted with Banyan's 
Pilgrim's Progress, yE.sop's Fables, a Life of Henry Clay, and Weems'Life of 
Washington. The " hatchet" story of Washington made a strong impression 
upon Abraham, which is illustrated in the following tale: 

Mr. Crawford had lent him a copy of Ramsey's Life of Washington. During a severe 
storm, Abraham improved liis leisure by reading this book. One night he laid it down 
carefully, as bethought, and the next morning he found it soaked through with water. 
The wind had changed, the rain had beaten in through a crack in the logs, and the book 
was ruined. How could he face the owner under such circumstances? He had no money 
to offer as a return, but he took the book, went directly to Mr. Crawford, showed him the 
irreparable Injury, and frankly and honestly offered to work for him until he should be 
satisfied. Sir, Crawford accepted the ofler, and gave Abraham the book for his own, in 
return for three days' steady labor in " pulling fodder." His manliness and straightfor- 
wardness won the esteem of the Crawfords, and, indeed, of all the neighborhood. 

After leaving school, and until he was eighteen years of age, 
he was constantly engaged in the avocations of a backwoods- 
man — cutting down trees and splitting rails — and in the 
evenings occupying his time reading such works as he could 
borrow in the neighborhood. A year later he was hired at ten 
dollars a month to go to New Orleans with a flatboat loaded 
Avith stores, which he accomplished to the satisfaction of his 
employer, by disposing of the goods to advantage. 

In March, 1830, his father determined to remove with his 
family to Illinois — still westward — being induced to this step 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



from the glowing accounts which were circulated of the fertile 
soil of the Prairie State. Traveling with wagons drawn by 
oxen, Abraham got one in charge, and in two weeks reached 
Decatur, Macon county, where the family settled on a tract of 
ten acres, on the north side of the Sangamon River, and about 
ten miles west of their halting place. 

Here a log cabin was built, and the erection of a fence suffi- 
cient to enclose the lot was the next improvement — a work that 
young Lincoln assisted in performing. Thus, in all the various 
employments in which he was engaged, Abraham was active, 
earnest and laborious — dignifying labor with an effort he never 
was ashamed of, but glad to think that he was useful to himself 
and to his kind. The following year the aspirations of manhood 
took hold upon him, and he resolved to seek his fortune among 
strangers. His parents and friends, on witnessing his depart- 
ure, were sad, and loth that he should go ; but this step, to him 
as to others the most momentous, had not been taken without 
due deliberation, and he went westward to Menard county, where 
he was employed on a farm near Petersburg ; then at Sangamon 
lent a hand in building a flatboat, taking another trip to New 
Orleans ; afterwards becoming a clerk of a store at New Salem. 

In 1832, the Black Hawk Indian War breaking out, he 
joined a volunteer company, and was chosen Captain. In war 
as in peace, he was prompt and efficient in the discharge of 
duty, his patriotism scorning danger and defying fatigue. This 
initiation of military life no doubt served him well when he 
became by virtue of his office Commander-in-Chief of the armies 
of the United States, and which has been proved by the orders 
issued and plans laid by him for the capture and destruction of 
"Stonewall" Jackson's army while it was threatening Wash- 
ington in 1862. 

On returning from the campaign, he was nominated and ran 
for the Legislature, but failed in securing a seat, although he 
received in his own precinct 277 out of 284 votes. This was 
the only occasion he was ever beaten before the people. He 
next opened store, with a stock of goods on credit, which, 
proving unprofitable, he sold out. At this time, he received 
the appointment as Postmaster of New Salem. . 



iv PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



Still eager for information, he had gained a knowledge of 
grammar, and was attaining an insight into the profession of 
the law, when he became acquainted with John Calhoun, after- 
wards President of the Lecompton (Kansas) Constitutional 
Convention, who proposed to aid him in his studies. At the 
same time he practiced surveying, in which he Avas successfully 
engaged for over a year. 

In 1834, he was elected to the Legislature, by the highest 
vote ever cast for any candidate, and was re-elected in 1836, 
1838, and 1840. During these terms he first became intimate 
with Stephen A. Douglas, but little dreamt of the antagonistic 
position they afterwards assumed towards each other before the 
country. Both were the architects of their own fortunes, and 
both achieved an eminence of political glory that has now 
become historical. 

In 1836, he obtained a license to practice law, and in April, 
1837, removed to Springfield, and went into partnership with 
John T. Stuart. He rose rapidly to distinction in his profes- 
sion, and was especially eminent as an advocate. An incident 
in his early practice is thus related : 

At a camp meeting in Menard county, a fight occurred, which resulted in 
the death of one of the participators. A son of Mr. Armstrong, of Peters- 
burg, who gave Lincoln employment when he went out into the world to 
work for himself, was charged and arrested for the crime. A true bill was 
found against him, and he was placed in jail to await examination. As soon 
as Mr. Lincoln became aware of tlie case, he wrote a kind letter to Mrs. Arm- 
strong, stating his anxiety that her son should have a fair trial, and offering, 
in return for her interest in him while under adverse prospects some years 
before, his services gratuitously. Investigation assured the attorney that his 
client was the victim of a conspiracy, and he determined to effect a postpone- 
ment until the excitement subsided. The day of trial, however, at last arrived, 
and the accuser positively testified that he saw the prisoner thrusting a knife 
into the heart of the murdered man. All the circumstances he remembered 
perfectly; the deed was committed about half-past nine o'clock at night, and 
the moon was shining brightly. Mr. Lincoln carefully reviewed the testimony, 
and then conclusively proved that the moon did not rise until an hour or more 
AFTER the murder was committed! Other discrepancies were shown, and, in 
half an hour after the jury retired, they returned with a verdict of "not guilty." 

The young man and his mother had been awaiting the final result with 
agonizing suspense. No sooner had the words dropped from the foreman's 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



lips, than the mother swooned in the arms of hgr son. He raised her and 
pressed her to his heart with words of glad reassurance. " Where is Mr. Lin- 
coln?" he exclaimed, and then ran across the room and grasped his deliverer 
by the hand, with a heart too full for utterance. 

Mr. Lincoln returned the warm pressure, and then cast his eyes towards the 
west, where the golden orb of day was still lingering. Half turning around, 
he said to the prisoner, tenderly, " It is not yet sundown, and you are free." 

Few could restrain their emotion, as they observed Abraham Lincoln obey- 
ing the divine injunction of comforting the widowed and fatherless. 

On the 4th of November, 1842, he was married to Miss Mary 
Todd, daughter of the Hon. Robert S. Todd, a lady of accom- 
plished manners and refined social tastes. 

In 1844, he was Presidential Elector in favor of Henry Clay, 
and canvassed the States of Illinois and Indiana in his behalf, 
addressing large audiences with marked success. 

In 1846, he was elected a Representative in Congress from 
the Central District of Illinois. In Congress he voted for the 
reception of anti-slavery memorials and petitions, for motions of 
Mr. Giddings for committees to inquire into the constitutionality 
of slavery in the District of Columbia, and the expediency of 
abolishing the slave trade in the District, and other such propo- 
sitions. He voted for the Wilmot proviso every time it was 
presented ; and he stated, in his contest with Judge Douglas, 
that he had voted for it, " in one way and another, about forty 
times." In January, 1849, he offered to the House a scheme 
for abolishing slavery in the District, by compensating the 
slaveholders from the treasury of the United States, provided 
a majority of the people of the District should vote to accept 
the proposal. He opposed the annexation of Texas, but voted 
for the loan bill to enable the Government to defray the ex- 
penses of the Mexican war. 

Mr. Lincoln was a member of the Whig National Convention 
of 1848, and urged the nomination of General Taylor. In 
1849 he was a candidate for the United States Senate, but the 
Legislature being Democratic, elected General Shields. 

After the expiration of his Congressional term, Mr. Lincoln 
applied himself to his profession with successful diligence, adding 
both to his fame and fortune, until the repeal of the Missouri 
Compromise called him again into the political arena. He 



vi PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 

entered with energy into the work which was to decide the 
choice of a Senator in pLice of General Shields, and it was 
mainly owing to his exertions that the success of Judge 
Trumbull, the Republican, and his election to the Senate, 
was attributed. At the Republican National Convention in 
1856, which nominated Gen. Fremont for the Presidency, the 
Illinois delegation unanimously urged Mr. Lincoln's name for 
the Vice-Presidency. 

On the 2d of June, 1858, the Republican State Convention 
nominated Mr. Lincoln as their candidate for the United States 
Senate, his opponent being Judge Douglas — two well matched 
champions of opposing political views. Douglas' superior skill as 
a debater, however, was more than met by Lincoln's plainness 
and logic ; the strategy of the one being counteracted by the 
tactics of the other. The contest that followed was one of con- 
siderable fervor, which led many of the people to form opinions 
and choose party who had not thought so deeply upon matters of 
government before. The election day at length arrived, when the 
popular vote stood: for the Republican candidate, 126,084; for 
the Douglas Democrats, 121,940 ; for the Lecompton candidates, 
5,091. But the vote for Senator being cast by the Legislature, 
Mr. Douglas was chosen, his supporters having a majority of 
eight on joint ballot. During this campaign, Mr. Lincoln paid 
a glowing tribute to the Declaration of Independence, from 
which we copy the closing extract : 

Toil may do anything with me you choose, if you will but heed these sacred 
principles. You may not only defeat me for the Senate, but you may take 
and fvt me to death. While pretending no indifference to earthly honors, I 
do claim to be actuated in this contest by something higher than an anxiety 
for office. I charge you to drop every paltry and insignificant thought for any 
man's success. It is nothing; I am nothing; Judge Douglas is nothing. 
But do not destroy that immortal emblem of humanity — the Declaration of 
American Independence. 

The promptings of his unselfish nature found a response, and 
he was pronounced to be a leader of men. People became anx- 
ious to hear and see the one wli<)- uttered such lofty sentiments. 
Like seed dropped into good ground, his words took root, and 
sprung up in a fruitful harvest of supporters to the great prin- 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



Vll 



ciples of liberty and humanity — truths that overcame the de- 
structive policies of doubt and corruption. 

To gratify public curiosity, a vrriter thus gave a pen-portrait 
of Mr. Lincoln ; 

He stands six feet and four inches high in his stockings. His frame is not 
muscular, but gaunt and wiry; his arms are long, but not unreasonably so for 
a person of his height; his lower limbs are not disproportioned to his body. 
In walking, his gait, though firm, is never brisk. He steps slowly and deliber- 
ately, almost always with his head incHned forward, and his hands clasped 
behind his back. In matters of dress he is by no means precise. Always 
clean, he is never fashionable; he is careless, but not slovenly. In manner he 
is remarkably cordial, and, at the same time, simple. His politeness is always 
sincere, but never elaborate and oppressive. A warm shake of the hand, and 
a warmer smile of recognition, are his methods of greeting his friends. At 
rest, his features though those of a man of mark, are not such as belong to a 
handsome man; but when his fine dark gray eyes are lighted up by any emo- 
tion, and his features begin their play, he would be chosen from among a crowd 
as one who had in him not only the kindly sentiments which women love, but 
the heavier metal of which full-grown men and presidents are made. His 
hair is black, and though thin is wiry. His head sits well on his shoulders, 
but beyond that it defies description. It nearer resembles that of Clay than 
that of Webster; but it is unlike either. It is very large, and, phrenologically, 
well proportioned, betokening power in all its developments. A slightly Ro- 
man nose, a wide-cut mouth, and a dark complexion, with the appearance of 
having been weather-beaten, complete the description. 

In his personal habits, Mr. Lincoln is as simple as a child. He loves a good 
dinner, and eats with the appetite which goes with a great brain; but his food 
is plain and nutritious. He never drinks intoxicating liquors of any sort, not 
even a glass of wine. He is not addicted to tobacco in any of its shapes. He 
never was accused of a licentious act in all his life. He never uses profane 
language. 

A friend says that once, when in a towering rage, in consequence of the 
efforts of certain parties to perpetrate a fraud on the State, he was heard to 
say: "They sha'n't do it, d — n 'em!" but beyond an expression of that kind, 
his bitterest feelings never carry him. He never gambles; we doubt if he ever 
indulges in any games of chance. He is particularly cautious about incurring 
pecuniary obligations for any purpose whatever, and in debt, he is never con- 
tent until the score is discharged. We presume he owes no man a dollar. He 
never speculates. The rage for the sudden acquisition of wealth never took 
hold of him. His gains from his profession have been moderate, but sufficient 
for his purposes. While others have dreamed of gold, he has been in pursuit 
of knowledge. In all his dealings he has the reputation of being generous but 
exact, and, above all, rehgiously honest. He would be a bold man who would 
say that Abraham Lincoln ever wronged any one out of a cent, or ever spent 



Vlll 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



a dollar that he had not honestly earned. His struggles in early life have 
made him careful of money; but his generosity with his own is proverbial. 
He is a regular attendant upon religious worship, and though not a communi- 
cant, is a pew-holder and liberal supporter of the Presbyterian Church in 
Springfield, to which Mrs. Lincoln belongs. He is a scrupulous teller of the 
truth — too exact in his notions to suit the atmosphere of Washington, as it 
now is. * * At home, he lives like a gentleman of modest means and 
simple taates. A good-sized house of wood, simply but tastefully furnished, 
surrounded by trees and flowers, is his own, and there he lives, at peace with 
himself, the idol of his family, and for his honesty, ability and patriotism, the 
admiration of his countrymen. 

On the 18th of May, 1860, the Kepublican National Conven- 
tion, which assembled at Chicago, nominated Mr. Lincoln for 
President of the United States, and that nomination was ratified 
by the people at the ensuing election in November. The electoral 
vote was subsequently proclaimed by Congress to be as follows : 

For Abraham Lincoln of Illinois, 180 

" John C. Breckenridge of Kentucky, 72 

" John Bell of Tennessee, 39 

" Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, 12 

On hearing of his nomination while at the Journal office in 
Springfield, he received the news in silence, remarking before 
he left the room — " There is a little woman down at our house 
would like to hear this ; I'll go down and tell her." No doubt 
he wished to commune with himself and advise with his safe 
counsellor as to the acceptance or rejection of his appointment 
to the highest gift of the nation. 

The load he had to bear was heavy — human strength was 
weak; but he chose to endure, and with his firm purposes to 
do right, constitutionally, before all the people, he left his hal- 
lowed home for the city of Washington, on the 11th of Feb- 
ruary, 1861, when he delivered a farewell addi'ess to his 
fellow-citizens in the following words : 

My Friends: No one not in my position can appreciate the sadness I feel 
at this parting. To this people I owe all that I am. Here I have lived more 
than a quarter of a century. Here my children were born, and here one of 
them lies buried. I know not how soon I shall see you again. A duty de- 
volves upon me which is perhaps greater than that which has devolved upon 
any other man since the days of Washington. He never would have sue- 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. IX 



ceeded except for the aid of Divine Providence, upon which he at all times 
relied. I feel that I cannot succeed without the same Divine aid which sus- 
tained him, and in the same Almighty Being I place my reliance for support; 
and I hope you, my friends, will all pray that I receive that Divine assistance, 
without which I cannot succeed, but with which success is certain. Again, I 
bid you all an affectionate farewell. 

His course towards the White House was a continued ovation 
incidental of politics and the conflict that had yet but feebly been 
perceived, until he arrived at Harrisburg, the capital of Penn- 
sylvania, when it was found expedient to change his route to 
thwart the devilish designs of treason. The South desired his 
election that they might the more closely hug their belief in 
secession ; but, at the same time, fanaticism essayed to prevent 
him reaching Washington. They could not live at peace, for 
they had begun to prepare for war. Power in high places had 
been wrested out of their hands, which they would not submit 
to. Their cherished institution was insecure; they madly would 
retain it — spread it widely — and even fight for it! The last 
resolve came first, which proved to be the beginning of the end. 

On the 4th of March, 1861, Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated 
as the Sixteenth President of the United States, with imposing 
ceremonies. In front of the capitol he delivered his address, 
from which we give a short extract : 

The chief magistrate derives all his authority from the people, and they have 
conferred none upon him to fix the terms for the separation of States. The 
people themselves, also, can do this if they choose, but the Executive, as such, 
can have nothing to do with it. His duty is to administer the present govern- 
ment as it came to his hands, and to transmit it, unimpaired by him, to his 
successor. Why should there not be a patient confidence in the ultimate 
justice of the people? Is there any better or equal hope in the world? In 
our present differences, is either party without faith of being in the right? If 
the Almighty Ruler of nations, with his eternal truth and justice, be on your 
side of the North, or on yours of the South, that truth and that justice will 
surely prevail by the judgment of this great tribunal, the American people. 

The eyes of the whole civilized world were bent on Abraham 
Lincoln, the man of the people. Some were beaming with de- 
light, that now they liad found one honest man in power — one 
who would try to do right for right's sake, despite jeer or taunt. 
Some were lighted up with scorn and contempt, as their system 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



of oppression was in fancied danger, for they hated the people. 
Some were gleaming with avarice at the thought that now the 
nation's extremity was their opportunity. 

They all had their reward. 

One, the infamy and disgrace of fine and imprisonment ; one, 
the inward satisfaction at the triumph of justice ; and the other, 
in exile, despair and death. 

The speeches and State papers of President Lincoln so exhibit 
a plainness and a faculty of " putting things," that they became 
subjects of criticism and arrested the attention of even the 
literary circles of refined Europe. Rev. J. P. Gulliver, in a 
communication to the N. Y. Independent, relates the substance 
of an interview he had with the Chief Magistrate bearing upon 
and illustrating this mental phenomenon, which we insert : 

"I want very much to know, Mr. Lincoln, how you got this unusual power 
of 'putting things.' It must have been a matter of education. No man has 
it by nature alone. What has your education been?" 

"Well, as to education, the newspapers are correct — I never went to school 
more than twelve months in my life. But, as you say, this must be a product 
of culture in some form. I have been putting the question you ask me to my- 
self while you have been talking. I can say this, that among my earliest 
recollections I remember how, when a mere child, I used to get irritated when 
anybody talked to me in a way I could not understand. I don't think I ever 
got angry at anything else in my life. But that always disturbed my temper, 
and has ever since. I can remember going to my little bedroom, after hearing 
the neighbors talk, of an evening, with my father, and spending no small part 
of the night, walking up and down, and trying to make out what was the exact 
meaning of some of their, to me, dark sayings. I could not sleep, though I 
often tried to, when I got on such a hunt after an idea, until I had caught it ; 
and when I thought I had got it, I was not satisfied until I had repeated it 
over and over, until I had put it in language plain enough, as I thought, for 
any boy I knew to comprehend. This was a kind of passion with me, and it 
has since stuck by me, for I am never easy now, when I am handling a thought, 
till I have bounded it north and bounded it south, and bounded it east and 
bounded it west. Perhaps that accounts for the characteristic you observe in 
my speeches, though I never put the two things together before." 

" Mr. Lincoln, I thank you for this. It is the most splendid educational 
fact I ever happened upon. This is genius, with all its impulsive, inspiring, 
dominating power over the mind of its possessor, developed by education into 
talent, with its uniformity, its permanence, and its disciplined strength, always 
ready, always available, never capricious — the highest possession of the human 
intellect. But let me ask, did you not have a law education ? How did you 
prepare for your profession?" 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. XI 



"Oh, yes. I 'read law,' as the phrase is; that is, I became a lawyer's 
clerk in Springfield, and copied tedious documents, and picked up what I could 
of law in the intervals of other work. But your question reminds me of a bit 
of education I had, which I am bound in honesty to mention. In the course 
of my law-reading I constantly came upon the word demonstrate. I thought, 
at first, that I understood its meaning, but soon became satisfied that I did rot. 
I said to myself, ' what do I do when I demonstrate more than when I reason or 
prove? How does demonstration differ from any other proof ?' I consulted 
Webster's Dictionary. That told of 'certain proof,' 'proof beyond the possi- 
bility of doubt;' but I could form no idea what sort of proof that was. I thought 
a great many things were proved beyond a possibility of doubt, without re- 
course to any such extraordinary process of reasoning as I understood ' de- 
monstration' to be. I consulted all the dictionaries and books of reference I 
could find, but with no better results. You might as well have defined blue to 
a blind man. At last I said, ' Lincoln, you can never make a lawyer if you do 
not understand what demonstrate means,' and I left my situation in Springfield, 
went home to my father's house, and stayed there till I could give any propo- 
sitions in the six books of Euclid at sight. I then found out what 'demonstrate' 
means, and went back to my law studies." 

" I could not refrain from saying, in my admiration of such a development 
of character and genius combined, ' Mr. Lincoln, your success is no longer a 
marvel. It is the legitimate result of adequate causes. You deserve it all, 
and a great deal more. If you will permit me, I would like to use this fact 
publicly. It will be most valuable in inciting our young men to that patient 
classical and mathematical culture which most minds absolutely require. No 
man can talk well unless he is able, first of all, to define to himself what he is 
talking about. Euclid, well studied, would free the world of half its calamities, 
by banishing half the nonsense which now deludes and curses it. I have often 
thought that Euclid would be one of the best books to put on the catalogue of 
the Tract Society, if they could only get people to read it. It would be a 
means of grace.' " 

" I think so," said he, laughing ; " I vote for Euclid." 

Fairly ensconced in the nation's watch-tower, he now com- 
menced his vigilant guard — a task harder than it had been his 
lot to share while in the backwoods of the West — which was 
relieved by the smile of affection and the innocent prattle of his 
youngest child in the rare intervals of pressing duty. 

The boom of Sumter's guns sounded the alarm of war, and 
heralded the fact that conciliation or negotiation was a failure. 
Manhood and principle were almost forgot by politicians in vain 
endeavors at peace-making ; but Abraham Lincoln kept perse- 
veringly on in his line of duty — to uphold the starry banner 
and preserve the Union. The people supported him in all that 
he did, notwithstanding malice in the North and rebellion in 



Xii PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



the South. As a measure to weaken the enemy, he promulgated 
his first "Emancipation Proclamation," which proved to be 
fraught with happiness to the bondman, and made famous as 
a benefactor of mankind the name of Abraham Lincoln : 

For Abraham 's the man to work out this plan 

By one * bold proclamation, 
And clear the way for a far blighter day 

To shine on our civilization. 

Which was as follows : 

I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States of America, and 
Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy thereof, do hereby proclaim and 
declare that hereafter, as heretofore, the war will be prosecuted for the object 
of practically restoring the constitutional relation between the United States 
and each of the States, and the people thereof, in which States that relation 
is or may be suspended or disturbed. 

That it is my purpose, upon the next meeting of Congress, to again recom- 
mend the adoption of a practical measure tendering pecuniary aid to the free 
acceptance or rejection of all Slave States so-called, the people whereof may 
not then be in rebellion against the United States, and which States may then 
have voluntarily adopted, or thereafter voluntarily adopt, immediate or gradual 
abolishment of slavery within their respective limits; and that the eifort to 
colonize persons of African descent, with their consent, upon this continent or 
elsewhere^ with the previously obtained consent of the governments existing 
there, will be continued. 

That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight 
hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State, or desig- 
nated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the 
United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the Executive 
Government of the United States, including the miUtary and naval authority 
thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do 
no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may 
make for their actual freedom. 

That the Executive will, on the first day of January aforesaid, by proclama- 
tion, designate the States and parts of States, if any, in which the people thereof 
respectively shall then be in rebellion against the United States; and the fact 
that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that day be in good faith repre- 
sented in the Congress of the United States, by members chosen thereto at 
elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State shall have 
participated, shall, in the absence of strong countervailing testimony, be deemed 
conclusive evidence that such State, and the people thereof, are not then in 
rebellion against the United States. 

* There were two proclamations in fact, but one was the virtual instrument which placed 
the name of Lincoln high on the scroll of fame, and blessed his memory through coming 
time. 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. xiii 

That attention is hereby called to an act of Congress entitled " An Act to 
make an additional Article of War," approved Marcli ISth, 1862, and which 
act is in the words and figures following: 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of 
America in Congress assembled, That hereafter the following shall be promul- 
gated as an additional article of war for the governraent of the army of the 
United States, and shall be obeyed and observed as such : 

Article. — All officers or persons in the military or naval service of the 
United States are prohibited from employing any of the forces under their 
respective commands for the purpose of returning fugitives from service or 
labor who may have escaped from any persons to whom such service or labor 
is claimed to be due ; and any officer who shall be found guilty by a court- 
martial of violating this article shall be dismissed from the service. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted. That this act shall take eifect from and 
after its passage. 

Also, to the ninth and tenth sections of an act entitled "An Act to Suppress 
Insurrection, to punish Treason and Rebellion, to seize and Confiscate Prop- 
erty of Rebels, and for other Purposes," approved July 16, 1862, and which 
sections are in the words and figures following: 

Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That all slaves of persons who shall here- 
after be engaged in rebellion against the Government of the United States, or 
who shall in any way give aid or comfort thereto, escaping from such persons 
and taking refuge within the lines of the army ; and all slaves captured from 
such persons, or deserted by them and coming under the control of the Govern- 
ment of the United States ; and all slaves of such persons found on [or] being 
within any place occupied by rebel forces, and afterwards occupied by the 
forces of the United States, shall be deemed captives of war, and shall be for- 
ever free of their servitude, and not again held as slaves, 

Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That no slave escaping into any State, 
Territory, or the District of Columbia, from any other State, shall be delivered 
up, or in any way impeded or hindered of his liberty, except for crime, or some 
oflFence against the laws, unless the persons claiming said fugitive shall first 
make oath that the person to whom the labor or service of such fugitive is 
alleged to be due is his lawful owner, and has not borne arms against the 
United States in the present rebellion, nor in any way given aid and comfort 
thereto ; and no person engaged in the military or naval service of the United 
States shall, under any pretence whatever, assume to decide on the validity of 
the claim of any person to the service or labor of any other person, or surrender 
up any such person to the claimant, on pain of being dismissed from the service. 

And I do hereby enjoin upon and order all persons engaged in the military 
and naval service of the United States to observe, obey, and enforce, within 
their respective spheres of service, the act and sections above recited. 

And the Executive will in due time recommend that all citizens of the 
United States who shall have remained loyal thereto throughout the rebellion, 
shall (upon the restoration of the constitutional relation between the United 



XIV 



PEESIDENT LINCOLN. 



States and tbeir respective States and people, if that relation shall have been 
suspended or disturbed) be compensated for all losses by acts of the United 
States, including the loss of slaves. 

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the 
United States to be affixed. 

Done at the city of Washington, this twenty-second day of September, 
[l. s.] in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, 
and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-seventh. 
By the President : Abraham Lincoln. 

William H. Seward, Secretary of State. 

As indicated in the foreg'oing document, he issued his second 
official Emancipation notice on the 1st of January, 1863, relating 
the States and parts of States that were then in rebellion, and 
declaring the slaves therein to be forever free, which edict he 
concluded in the following words : 

And upon this, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the 
Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment of 
mankind and the gracious favor of Almighty God. 

The people came to the conclusion that these proclamations 
were destined to bring slavery to a timely end where'- rebellion 
was raging ; and to overcome the anomaly of that evil existing 
with freedom in other parts of the country, a resolution was 
adopted in Congress to submit to the action of the several 
States an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, 
prohibiting the existence of slavery within the States and Terri- 
tories of the Union forever. Illinois, by her promptitude, placed 
herself in the van of this needful movement. 

Steadily did President Lincoln steer the ship of state, although 
his enemies were not few. His four years of servitude were 
about drawing to a close, when the Republican Convention met 
at Baltimore on the 7th of June, 1864, and renominated him for 
President. His aspiring opponent, Gen. George B. McClellan, 
was nominated by the Democratic party at their convention in 
Chicago ; but their platform and candidate both showing signs 
of retrogression, they deservedly failed to win. 

On the 8th November, 1864, the entire vote polled stood thus: 

Abraham Lincoln, 2,223,035 

Gen. McClellan, 1,811,754 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. XV 



The confidence of the people again strengthened the heart 
and purposes of President Lincoln in his administration of the 
Government. The platform of principles set forth by the nomi- 
nating Convention received his hearty approval, being, next to 
the Constitution, his guiding star of office. 

On the 14th of April, 1861, the flag on Fort Sumter was 
lowered to rebellion, and carried off by the brave few who had 
made a resolute but an unavailing defence. On the 14th April, 
1865, the same flag, so long hid away, was flung to the breeze 
by the assembled throng on Sumter's battered walls : 

" 'Tis the Star-spangled Banner, ! long may it wave 
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave." 

This was a day of rejoicing. Richmond had been taken. The 
mainstay of the rebels, Lee's army, had been defeated, broken, 
and were now prisoners. Their last hope was gone, and joy 
was in the North at the near prospect of returning peace. 

Great preparations were making throughout the land for a 
celebration of triumph on the 17th April ; but this feu de joie 
Mr. Lincoln was not ordained to witness. During the day, he 
was invited to visit Ford's Theatre in the evening, and it was 
also announced that Lieut. Gen. Grant would be present. About 
ten o'clock, while the play of " Our American Cousin" was pro- 
gressing, a stranger, who proved to be J. W. Booth, an actor of 
some note, entered the box occupied by the Presidential party, 
and leveling a pistol close behind the head of Mr. Lincoln, 
fired, the ball lodging deep in the brain of the President. The 
assassin jumped upon the stage, shouting '•'■Sio Semper Tyrannis!'' 
the motto upon the escutcheon of the State of Virginia, and fled. 

Human help to save the President was vain. He lingered 
on unconsciously until twenty-two minutes past seven next morn- 
ing, when death relieved him of his suffering, and changed the 
gladness of the American people into a wail of sorrow. 

«''Tis the wink of an eye, 'tis the draught of a breath ; 
From the blossom of health to the paleness of death, 
From the gilded saloon to the bier and the shroud — 
Oh why should the spirit of mortal be proud ?" 

"Treason," in its expiring throes, "had done its worst;" and 
as the Cain-like hand which smote our chief fell palsied in 



XVI 



PRESIDENT LINCOLN. 



death, his life, other than as a warning, was declared to have 
been "useless." 

The President's remains — accompanied by those of a darling 
son, who had been earlier called — moved to their resting place 
by the same route he had partly taken when appointed to occupy 
the chair of State, and were everywhere met with the symbols 
of grief and respect ; 

" And now, the Martyr is moving in triumphal march mightier than when 
alive. The nation rises up at his coming. Cities and States are his pall- 
bearers, and cannon beat the hours with solemn procession." 

On the 4th of May, in a little knoll in Oak Ridge Cemetery, 
near Springfield, not far from his former home in the flesh, 
Illinois received back her son to her bosom. 

Hereafter his dearbought fame shall be 
The unfettered praises of the free. 




TAVTAIN TnoMl'SON. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



CAPTAIN THOMPSON. 

(of the regular army.) 

Capt. John A. Thompson, of the 18tli U. S. Infantry, killed 
in battle at "Hoover's Gap," Tenn., was born at Northampton, 
Mass., October 22, A. D. 1824, and was the son of Amherst 
Thompson of Chicago, whose father was a soldier of the Revo- 
lutionary War, was in numerous battles, and for more than 
thirty years drew a pension from the government. Col. Joseph 
Thompson, the father of Amherst, held a commission under 
Washington, in the Revolution. 

John A. Thompson entered Amherst College, Mass., in Sep- 
tember, 1842, where he remained until the commencement of 
his junior year, taking the first prize for declamation. In the 
fall of 1844, pecuniary considerations induced young Thompson 
to leave college, in which he supported himself partially by 
teaching, and with only a few dollars in his pocket, which was 
increased somewhat by the liberality of his uncle, John Thomp- 
son, Esq., a prominent banker of Wall Street, Ncav York, he 
launched out upon the great ocean of life. He traveled to 
Virginia, where his genial disposition and interesting manners 
soon brought him employment as a teacher. Remaining in 
Virginia about a year, he emigrated to Missouri, where he was 
engaged in teaching some two years, when he returned to 
Amherst, Mass., and commenced reading law with the Hon. 
Edward Dickinson, of that place. Under the instruction of 
Mr. Dickinson, young Thompson advanced rapidly in his pro- 
fessional studies, and while a student, tried cases Avith much 
ability. After finishing his legal studies, he removed to Niles, 
Michigan, was admitted to the bar of that State, and at once 



10 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

entered upon his profession. The " rough and tumble " of 
western practice at that time was well calculated to bring 
out the abilities of Mr. Thompson, and he soon became a popular 
lawyer of that region. He was for a time prosecuting attorney 
for the county of Berrien, Michigan. 

In the summer of 1852, Mr. Thompson removed to Chicago, 
Illinois, where, for some eight years, he Avas engaged in the active 
practice of the law in connection with his brother. 

While in Chicago, he engaged to a considerable extent in 
politics, and Avas a popular political orator and debater. Being 
a noble, whole-souled, liberal man, with hosts of friends, Mr, 
Thompson was, in the spring of 1855, by a large majority, 
elected City Attorney of the city of Chicago, and performed 
the responsible duties of that office, then embracing all the legal 
duties relating to city matters, to the satisfaction of all classes. 
In the ensuing year, at the request of the Common Council, 
in connection with his brother, Geo. W. Thompson, Esq., 
a well known member of the Chicago bar, he compiled and 
codified the ordinances and laws of Chicago, producing, out 
of a confused and tangled mass of city legislation, the present 
'■'■^lunicipal Laws of Chicago,'" a work Avhich has justly received 
the praises of the public. 

As a lawyer, Mr. Thompson was of the first class for a man 
of his age — rarely excelled in forensic debate, an eloquent and 
polished speaker, often powerful in his eflForts, and always honor- 
able and high minded. Few men have been more popular in 
Chicago tlian he. 

In 1859, Mr. Thompson was induced by his friends to settle 
in south-west Missouri, and removed his f;imily to Granby, 
Newton county, Missouri, and was preparing to develop the lead 
mines of that region, when the threatening clouds of the Great 
Rebellion began to gather. Again and again did he with 
poAverful eloquence appeal in vain to his fellow-countrymen to 
forbear to lay their hands upon the pillars of the Repul)lic. 
Standing as he then did upon the bounds of civilization and 
beyond the line where loyalty ended and treason began, man- 
fully and with heroic stubbornness did Mr. Thompson attempt 
to breast back the rising tide of rebellion in that section, until 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



11 



actual danger to his family compelled him to leave his new home 
with all its promises and hopes. 

We extract from a report of a speech from the Neosho 
Herald, made hy Mr. Thompson before he left : 

"Who would strike the American Republic from the list of nations? Our 
country was not designed for destruction. The Temple of Liberty was not 
erected to be laid in ruins. Yon lofty tower dedicated to him ' first in war, 
first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen,' was not intended for 
the ivy to creep upon its crumbling walls and broken columns. The Union of 
these States was not cemented with Revolutionary blood, to be dissolved. It 
cannot be without civil war, rapine, treason, annihilation ; — it cannot be 
without marring the memories of the distinguished deadend overturning their 
monumental stones ; — it cannot be without impeaching f he patriotism of the 
eloquent Clay, or denying the logic of the irresistible Webster; — it cannot be 
without disputing the justice of our fathers' struggle for independence and 
blotting from memory the name of Washington, and with it his counsels of 
wisdom and atfection. ^The Union, the Union — let it be preserved ! ^ " 

He retmmed to Chicago in the spring of 1861, resolv^ to 
give the rest of his life to his country. He immediately 
applied himself to the study of military tactics, assisted in 
organizing the first Illinois regiments, and returned to Mis- 
souri, assisted Gen. Lyon in removing arms from St. Louis 
to Illinois for safety, and subsequently entered the government 
service as an assistant in the department of Gen. Fremont, 
who appointed him on his staff with the rank of Captain, for 
meritorious services. Being well acquainted Avitli the country, 
and knowing many of the leading men of that State, Capt. 
Thompson was a valuable aid to Gen. Fremont, who committed 
to him important trusts and duties. When Gen. Fremont was 
relieved of his command, and his staff" officers dispersed, Capt. 
Thompson once more returned to Chicago, and was preparing 
to oro-anize a regiment of volunteers, when he was notified 
of his appointment by President Lincoln, to a Captaincy in 
the Regular Army, which was highly complimentary to him, as 
an appointment from civil life to that rank in the old army was 
an unusual thing;. 

His commission issued February 21, 1862, taking rank from 
October 26, 1861, and was credited to Missouri, through the 
efforts, principall}'-, of the Hon. John S. Phelps, member of 
Congress from that State, a social • and political friend of Capt. 



12 MAIITYIIS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Thompson. He always spoke of the kindness of Mr. Phelps 
with much gratitude. 

He was assigned to the 18th United States Infantry, whose 
headquarters were at Columbus, Ohio, where he immediately 
reported for duty. This regiment not being full, Col. Carrington 
ordered him to return to Chicago and recruit a company of 
regulars, and he at once entered upon the work. At that time 
it was difficult to obtain men to enter the regular army, nearly 
all preferring the volunteer service, yet Capt. Thompson, by his 
energy and perseverance, speedily recruited one of the very • 
best and most effective companies of troops that Illinois has 
sent to the war, which he drilled to a high standard of disci- 
pline. ^'■Captain Thompsons Regulars'' were the pride of 
Chicago while they were there. He was ordered back to 
Columbus with his company, and placed in command of " Camp 
Thomas," a camp of instruction for the 16tli and 18th U. S. 
Infantry. The 18tli Regiment (the largest ever in the American 
army) was composed of twenty-four hundred men — three bat- 
talions of eight companies each. The first battalion was soon 
ordered to the field, leaving Captain Thompson in command of 
the second battalion. At the time of one of the threatened 
advances of Gen. Bragg on Cincinnati, he was ordered with his 
battalion to that place to defend it, when he was placed in com- 
mand of the " City Guards," composed of his battalion of regu- 
lars and some volunteer companies. Afterwards, he was ordered 
to the field in Kentucky, and placed in command of the batteries 
opposite Cincinnati. For a time he was in command of " Bui*- 
bank Barracks," in Cincinnati. The alarm in that city hav- 
ing subsided, on the 13th Feb., 1863, by especial request of Gen. 
Rosecrans, Capt. Thompson, with his battalion, was ordered to 
the field in Tennessee, with the Army of the Cumberland, and 
took his post in the "Regular Brigade" of that army. 

On the 23d of June, 1863, Captain Thompson, in a letter to 
his wife, writes: '■''To-tnorroto we advance upon Bragg s army. 
If it should happen that I fall, remember and be happy in the 
thought that all this is for my cou7itry, my wife and child." 

Brave words of a true hearted man ! and ere the sacred 
missive had reached his wife, the lifeblood of the noble martyr 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 13 

was poured out on the altar of that country which he loved so 
well! 

The line of march of the Regular Brigade was on the Man- 
Chester road, leading through " Hoover's Gap," a strong position 
occupied by Johnson's, Bates' and Clayton's brigades of rebel 
infantry, the hills being well supported by batteries, all in 
position to resist the advance of Gren. Rosecrans. On the 
morning of the 26th June, Gen. Reynolds' division had surprised 
the enemy at this gap, but by desperate fighting the enemy had 
regained their ground, when the Regular Brigade was ordered 
into a charge upon these positions. 

The correspondent of the N. Y. Herald, speaking of this 
charge, says : " The Regular Brigade in the centre and holding 
the advance, had a more beautiful field than either Walker on 
the right or Humbright on the left, and the charge which it 
made across the valley was the feature of the advance — the men 
moved in most beautiful order, the line never wavering or 
becoming broken until the fence behind which the enemy rested 
was reached. Here a brisk engasement ensued — the rebels 
were driven back in great disorder, throwing away their blankets 
and canteens. Our principal loss fell upon the 18th Infantry." 

The second battalion of the 18th Infantry, commanded and 
led by Capt. Thompson, had the extreme advance of this charge, 
towards the close of which it became necessary to make an 
oblique movement, and while issuing the order " right oblique 
march,'' Capt. Thompson received a large minie ball, which 
passed through his bridle hand and thence into his body near 
the navel, lodging near the spine. He fell from his horse, and 
while Gen. Rousseau and stafi", and Gen. Brannon and staff, had 
gathered around and were condoling with him, a rebel shell 
exploded in their midst, scattering the party. He was removed 
back to the hospital in Nashville, where he died of his wounds 
the ensuing Tuesday, June 30, 1863, surrounded by sympa- 
thising friends, a few hours before his wife reached him ! The 
last words of the gallant hero were : "/ now leave all ivith 
God." 

His body was brought to Chicago by his wife and brother, 
and buried with full military and masonic honors in " Grace- 



14 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

land," by the side of three of his children. He was a promi- 
nent member of several masonic bodies, being a Sir Knight in 
Apollo Commandery of Chicago, and a member of Lafayette 
Chapter of R. A. M., in said city. 

In 1851, Mr. Thompson married Miss Elizabeth W. Lusk, 
of Newark, N. Y., a very estimable lady, who, with a young 
daughter, now survive him. 

Capt. Thompson was an ardent patriot from the first, giving 
all his powers to his country. On the 22d day of April, 1861, 
when the news was received of the fire on Sumter, and Chicago 
was arming a force to fortify Cairo, he became highly excited 
and hastily arranged matters to start for Missouri the next 
morning. He gave a couple of horse pistols, wliich he brought 
from Missouri, to the Cairo expedition, and anticipating danger, 
made a hasty will of what little property he had, and started 
for Missouri with his revolver in his pocket, to battle for the old 
flag. He concludes this hasty tvill with the following patriotic 
bequest : " I give and bequeath my horse pistols to my country, 
hoping that by their aid the same may endure forever — and my 
revolver to the first soldier of the old republic who sends the 
first secessionist, in arms against his country, to his long home.''' 

From this time Mr. Thompson was in the service of his 
country until his death. His mind, temperament and business 
experience was well calculated to make him an excellent officer. 
He at once won the respect of the old army officers, and soon 
became an excellent military man. He was kept in commands 
above his rank, Avhicli corresponded in the volunteer service to 
the duties of colonel. In the field he always commanded his 
battalion, composed of eight full companies of troops, but the 
slow rule of promotion in the regular army kept him with the 
rank of "Captain Commanding." On his death, prominent 
officers of the Regular Brigade wrote, " that the 18th Infantry 
had lost one of its most valuable and gallant officers." 

Gen. Rousseau Avrites : " I was just behind Capt. Thompson 
when he fell. He was a brave and efficient officer and an honor 
to the service, and fell gallantly fighting for his country." 

Judge Swayne, of the United States Supreme Court, who 
became acquainted with Capt. Thompson, in Ohio, in a letter to 



MARTYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 15 

his friends, says of him : " He was a gallant soldier, a gentle- 
man of great worth and high character — an ardent patriot. His 
love of country and desire to serve her carried him into the 
military service. I had predicted for him, in my own mind, a 
brilliant career. I have met with no more striking or interesting 
man in the army." 

Thus, in the full vigor of his manhood — his country still 
trembling in the balance — the laurel wreath of her deliverance 
almost within his grasp — amid the fury and carnage of the 
battle field — bearing aloft his tried sword and sliouting omvard 
to his brave battalion — the clarion notes of victory sounding in 
his ears — the swift, fatal missile of treason pierced him to the 
heart, and the noble John A. Thompson fell, to battle for his 
country no more ! 

Behold the grandeur of this spectacle ! 

In 1860, the Rev. Amherst L. Thompson, a younger brother 
of the subject of this sketch, fresh from the sacred groves of 
Andover, under the benevolent auspices of the American Board 
of Foreign Missions, and under orders from On High which he 
read in the Great Book, buckled on the armor of a Christian 
soldier and went forth to fight the battles of his Lord and 
Master in heathen lands. Leaving friends and kindred and 
comforts and home, he traveled over oceans, seas and con- 
tinents, and at last unfurled the blessed banner of the Cross 
amid the benighted races of Central Asia. For a brief period, 
Avith Spartan heroism, did he battle the errors of a wicked 
populace, contending with the demons of darkness, superstition 
and crime, and died on the field of his labor — a noble Christian 
martyr, in the noontide of his heroic deeds ! 

A few months later, the brother, the subject of this sketch, 
beholding the mighty pillars of his loved country crumbling 
one by one beneath the rolling tide of a gigantic and wicked 
rebellion, likewise buckled on the armor of a Patriot soldier, 
and went forth from Chicago to fight for the honor and integrity 
of his native land. He eagerly grasped the glorious old banner 
of the Stars and proudly bore it onward into the midst of the 
fury and carnage of the battle field — and fell, a heroic, patriot 
soldier, dying for his country ! 



16 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Ye Winds, which wafted the pilgrims to this land of promise ! 
catch upon your broad wings and onward bear a record of this 
story ! Let the selfish, the sordid and the base, read it — let 
him who would strike at the vitals of his country, read it — let 
posterity see what a Christian can do for his God — what a 
Patriot can do for his country ! 

Brave, noble, illustrious brothers ! the splendor of these 
achievements shall ever radiate amid the folds of those sacred 
banners under which you fell — emblems wdiich, by the blessing 
of God, shall symbol forth to distant ages a world redeemed 
and a nation saved ! 

And Avhen, in the " good time coming," the fragments of this 
wicked generation shall be gathered into history, good men, 
philanthropists and Christians — 

" Will, by their pilgrim-circled hearth, 

Talk of thy doom without a sigh ; 
For thou art Freedom's now and Fame's — 
Tivo of the few, the immortal names 

That were not born to die." 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 17 



CAPTAIN DENISON. 

Capt. Charles Edward Denison was born at Woodstock, 
Vt., on the 30tli of May, 1827. At the age of fourteen, he 
entered Norwich University, a military college, under the 
charge of Gen. T. B. Ransom, (father of Gen. T. E. G. Ransom, 
of the Army of the Mississippi,) who fell at the head of his 
command at the storming of Chapultapec in Mexico. Young 
Denison graduated in 1845. After leaving college, he was 
employed on the Passumpsic River Railroad, Vermont, as civil 
engineer. In 1852, he was on the Cincinnati and Marietta 
Railroad in a similar capacity. In 1853, he removed to Peoria, 
111., and was employed there as civil engineer on the Peoria 
and Oquawka, the eastern extension, and other roads. In 
1856, he took an active part in raising a military company in 
Peoria, called the " National Blues," and was elected their first 
captain. 

At the first call of the President for 75,000 volunteers, he, 
in a few days, raised a company of three-months , men ; was 
elected their captain, and reported in Springfield, and formed 
Co. E of the 8th Regiment Illinois Volunteers — Col. Oglesby. 
This regiment went direct to Cairo. Soon after, some influential 
friends, then in Washington, obtained for him the appointment 
of a captaincy in the Regular Army — a promotion quite unex- 
pected to himself, but a well merited compliment to so brave 
and noble-hearted a soldier. He was assigned to the 18th U. 
S. Infantry, and to the command of Co. B. He immediately 
reported for duty at Columbus, Ohio, where this regiment Avas 
then forming. He remained there during the summer of 1861, 
filling up and drilling his company. In the fall, the first bat- 
talion of his regiment was ordered to the field in Kentucky, 
and joined Thomas' division of Buell's army. 

Capt. Denison was with the " Regular Brigade" of that army 
in their many long and tedious marches through Kentucky and 
Tennessee : now skirmishing with the enemy, now guarding 



18 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

railroads ; again marching witli all the celerity possible, to take 
part in some important conflict, as at the battle of Mill Springs, 
Ky., and the second day's battle of Sliiloh. He was at the siege 
of Gorinth, the battle of Perryville, Ky., and the conflict at Stone 
River, where, on the forenoon of 31st Dec, 1862, in that severe 
engagement, in a cedar thicket, wdiile leading his company, he 
was wounded in the knee with a round shot. He refused to be 
carried to the rear, but lay where he was wounded, and con- 
tinued to encourage his men until they were forced back and 
the ground on which he fell was occupied by the enemy. He 
remained there until the ground was retaken in the afternoon 
by our forces, when he was carried to the field hospital and 
had his limb amputated. He lingered on until the 15th of 
January, 1863, when death claimed the valiant officer as its 
own. He was highly esteemed by his brother oflficers as a true 
man and a noble soldier. 

Capt. Denison, by education and natural endowments, was 
well fitted for the place which he held. He had long desired 
a position in the army, and had he been fired with the ambition 
for distinction that many possess, he might have held a higher 
rank, but in his singleness of purpose, he aimed only to serve 
his country, and he did it well. 

Capt. Denison was married twice, and leaves a w^fe and three 
cliildren to mourn his loss — a daughter by his first wife and two 
sons by the last. 

His remains were conveyed to Peoria, and buried in Spring- 
dale Cemetery. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 19 



MAJOR APLINGTON. 

Zenas Aplington was born in Broome county, New York, 
on the 24th of December, 1815. His father, James Aplington, 
was a Baptist clergyman. We have nothing to record of his 
early life, but may presume it to have been a period of struggles 
like those of most American young men of humble parentage, 
as the education he received was limited, his opportunities 
probably being but few in number. 

About the year 1837, Mr. Aplington emigrated to Buffalo 
Grove (by the Indians called JVanusha), Ogle county, Illinois, 
where he fixed his permanent residence. His early occupations 
there were successively those of a farmer, a blacksmith and 
carpenter (conjointly), and a merchant. As a builder, he erected 
the Lee county jail at Dixon, and a number of other substantial 
buildings in his own neighborhood. As illustrating the versa- 
tility of his talents, it may be said that though an excellent 
mechanic, both as carpenter and blacksmith, he never served an 
apprenticeship at either occupation. While a farmer, he resided 
upon and cultivated a farm, which subsequently became the site 
of the now thriving town of Polo. 

On the 27th of April, 1842, he was married to Caroline, 
daughter of William and Jane Nichols — a most estimable lady, 
by wh-om he had six children, all of whom are now living. 

In 1855, he contracted with the Illinois Central Railroad 
Company for the building of the section of their road passing 
through the town of Polo, which dates its prosperity from the 
completion of that road. Mr. Aplington, owning the land, at 
once laid it out in town lots, and by liberal terms and generous 
enterprise secured the rapid settlement and building up of the 
town. The rapid increase in the value of his landed property 
made him a wealthy man. Subsequently, during the crisis of 
1857, he met with heavy pecuniary losses, and became again 
reduced to comparative poverty. So that he was first poor, 
then rich, then poor again. 



20 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

In 1858, Mr. Aplington was chosen State Senator for the 
district, comprising the counties of Ogle, Carroll, Winnebago 
and Boone. He served but one session in this capacity (his 
term being uncompleted at the time of his death) ; but brief as 
was this service, he achieved an enviable reputation as a legis- 
lator. His native shrewdness, genuine talent, imperturbable 
good nature, unflinching integrity and untiring energy gave him 
at once a large influence in our legislative councils. His votes 
were ever on the side of the right, and in the Capitol, as at 
home, the poor and the oppressed always found in him a friend 
and an able and eloquent advocate. It is noteworthy, that 
among his warmest personal friends were senators and others, 
who most strenuously opposed him in partisan contests. 

When the rebellion broke out, in 1861, Mr. Aplington lent 
his whole energies to the cause of the country, and performed 
efiicient service in raising volunteers. In August, of that year, 
he organized a company of cavalry, of which he was chosen 
Captain. When the company arrived at Springfield, they joined 
the 7th Illinois Cavalry, Col. Kellogg, of which regiment Capt. 
Aplington was elected Major. In this capacity he for some 
time commanded the post of Bird's Point, and was with Gen, 
Pope at the taking of New Madrid and Island No. 10, where 
he performed important service. 

On the 8th of May, 1862, Major Aplington was with our 
advanced forces near Corinth, Miss., in command of a battalion 
of his regiment. Here he was ordered, by Acting Brig. Gen. 
Paine, to charge upon the rebel infantry in a dense wood. He 
remonstrated against doing this, alleging that his men would be 
cut to pieces without accomplishing any good. Upon the repe- 
tition of the order, he mounted his horse, and turned to his 
men, saying, " Boys ! you hear the General's command. We 
must obey orders. Follow me." He then dashed gallantly 
forward upon three or four regiments of rebel infantry, himself 
several paces forward of his men. One rebel, who essayed to 
"pick off" the brave commander, was stricken down by a blow 
from his stalwart arm. A second was more successful, and a 
rebel bullet entered Major Aplington's head, just below the eye. 
Dropping his sabre, he crossed his arms upon his breast, a calm 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 21 

smile settling upon his features, and fell from his horse — dead. 
A contest then ensued for the possession of the body, which 
his men succeeded in bearing from the field. 

The remains of Major Aplington were taken to his home 
in Polo for burial, where the closing of all business, and the 
universal attendance of all classes at the funeral obsequies, tes- 
tified the estimation in which he was held in the community 
in which he had lived. 

In person, Major Aphngton was tall and powerfully built, and 
his early occupations added largely to his muscular powers. 
He was possessed of great native talent, and though his early 
education Avas limited, by diligent study and careful reading he 
made himself thoroughly acquainted with the history, resources 
and needs of our country and the principles upon which our 
Government is founded. The village debating clubs always 
found him an active member ; and we find him on the stump and 
in the forum an able advocate and a prompt debater, and a 
cool, clear-headed legislator. He was frank, open, and even 
somewhat eccentric in his manners ; but we have yet to know 
the person who ever received from him a harsh or unkind word. 
The gentleness and kindness of his nature were shown in all his 
intercourse with his fellows. Unswerving in his integrity, kind 
and generous to the poor and needy, liberal and even profuse 
in his public services, he was universally esteemed, and wielded 
a large influence in his own community and wherever he was 
known. Amid all the "ups and downs" of fortune through 
which he passed, his generous heart and his conduct to his 
fellow-men knew no change. As a Christian patriot, he gave 
his life for the salvation of his country, that he might leave to 
las children the precious birthright of freedom which lie had 
inherited. Brave as a lion, gentle as a woman, true as steel, all 
men loved him, and all men bewail his loss. 



22 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT PRICE, 

William Delano Price, the second son of William H, 
Price and Sarah A. Delano, was born March 1st, 1843, at 
Chillicothe, Ross county, Ohio. 

In the autumn of 1849, his parents removed to LaSalle 
county, Illinois. His early youth was devoted to the occupa- 
tions of a prairie farm, and was marked by a quiet, genial 
cheerfulness and gentleness, which made him a favorite in the 
family and amongst his few acquaintances. 

He very early manifested an untiring industry in the intel- 
lectual occupations of his home, and a quiet and dauntless 
courage that disregarded danger when duty called him to con- 
front it. At fifteen years of age, he called to his assistance a 
still younger companion, and the two with difficulty and at great 
personal hazard, saved two other and older companions from 
drowning. 

As his character was gi-adually unfolded, the manifestation* 
of uncommon intellectual promise became so decided, that his 
parents acceded to his wish, and he entered upon a preparatory 
course of study in September, 1859, at Lake Forest, in the 
academy connected with Lind University. 

At this school he spent two years, to what purpose is ex- 
plained by the following extract from a letter of the Rev. W. C. 
Dickinson, Professor of Languages, of the Academy: "-Your 
son, in point of intellectual endowments, gave great promise. 
His scholarship was always high ; few here, if any, have ever 
surpassed him. He had a true love for learning. The motives 
that prompted him as a scholar, were such as could not have 
failed, I think, to lead him to honorable distinction in any pro- 
fession he might have chosen. He had qualities of mind, also, 
of rare excellence. His literary taste and judgment were 
uncommonly mature and fine. His delicate sensibilities, as they 
manifested themselves in his compositions, I greatly admired. 
One does not often find a fancy so exuberant and yet so correct, 
in one of his age. Of his fidelity to all duties as a member of 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



this school, I can only speak in praise. He was always in his 
place, always ready, and with a cheerful interest in his Avork. 
His genial disposition made him a favorite with all. Cherishing 
no jealousies or enmities himself, he was the object of none 
from others. All loved to claim him for a friend, and imitate 
his excellences. In moral character, he was pure and manly. 
For a period of many weeks, he was deeply interested in reli- 
gion. He did not feel ready to make a public profession, but I 
cannot feel otherwise than that the impressions he received 
here, remained in permanent effect upon his character." 

Upon the close of the summer term of 1861, " thoroughly 
prepared to enter any of the eastern colleges," he came home. 
In the spring of that year, a class attended to military drill for 
a short time, under the late Col. Ellsworth, and afterAvards under 
one of his pupils. This constituted a meagre experience, but 
it illustrated for William elementary military principles, and 
afforded a foundation for intelligent industry to build upon. 

Repeated attempts to get a cadet's warrant, at West Point, 
having failed, he determined to enter the service of his country 
as a soldier. With the patient industry which marked all his 
efforts, he immediately set at work to improve his knowledge of 
drill ; and when, in the ensuing October, he entered the 53d 
Regiment of Illinois Volunteers, then being organized at Ottawa, 
it is believed that he was fully the equal in thorough and accu- 
rate knowledge of drill, and in the faculty of applying it in the 
instruction of others, of the best informed officers of that 
regiment. 

The ability to bring recruits being avowedly the only recog- 
nized qualifications for holding a commission in the regiment, 
he entered Company A as a private, and upon the organization 
of it was appointed Orderly Sergeant. The duties of this 
position he discharged without intermission for a single day, 
until the 5th day of September, 1862. At this time he was 
ordered by the Commandant of the regiment to assume the 
duties of Second Lieutenant. How he discharged the some- 
what trying and invidious duties of orderly sergeant, may be 
safely left to the testimony of the members of Company A, and 
to the superior officers of the regiment. 



24 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

His kindly temper and suavity of manner were, in him, the 
alHes not of weakness, but of power. His instance is a signal 
proof of the character of the cruel fallacy a thousand times 
iterated and reiterated, that an officer who discharges his duty 
well, must of necessity provoke the ill-will of his men. 

He was formed for a leader of men, and endowed with the 
power of exerting the strongest of all influences upon them. 
Were they in camp, on the march, or in the hospital, he shunned 
no labor that could promote their comfort or improvement. 
Incapable of doing intentional injustice himself, nothing so 
excited his indignation as injustice to soldiers by others. They 
understood him, confided in him, and loved him. 

Neither in his diary or in his correspondence with his rela- 
tives, is there any complaint or notice of wrong or injury 
sustained by himself. A single gleam of his consciousness that 
he was more than commonly trusted by official superiors, ema- 
nates from only one entry in a fragmentary diary he kept 
during a part of his year of service : " Sept. 3d, 1862. We 
are on picket on the Hernando road, three miles south-east of 
Memphis. The sun is just setting and the boys are variously 
occupied; some are reading, some playing cards, others cook- 
ing, and some are just starting out after sweet potatoes and 
tomatoes. I am, as usual, in the most advanced squad, out of 
reach of the officer of the day, and of every one else who 
might consider it necessary to keep a strict watch upon us. 
Every wagon which passes out is searched, and any newspapers 
or suspicious articles are taken." 

The next entry in the diary is under date of Sept. 6 : " We 
are on the march again ; some say, for Bolivar. Yesterday I 
was detailed to act as 2d Lieutenant until further orders." 

Various incidents and reflections are entered from the 8th to 
the 14th, of which the last was written in camp, at Bolivar, and 
is concluded with the remark : "I was quite sick upon the 
march, and came very near having to be carried. But I perse- 
vered in tramping on without help, and finally walked out of it 
at the rate of 18 miles a day. One poor fellow was taken sick 

Ljust after starting, was placed in an ambulance, and died there 
before the end of the journey." 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 



25 



Following this, are notices of various incidents of camp life, 
and on the 3d of October, 1862, occm-s the last in the diary : 
" I have neglected writing for some time. However, very little 
has passed of any significance. I have been sick for some 
little time, although I've been on duty until the past two days ; 
a dose of calomel has salivated me and put me in an uncom- 
fortable position. Regular battalion drills are held every after- 
noon, and if persevered in, Avill be productive of much good." 

Thus, whilst he was borne down by illness, the last line traced 
by his hand in the scanty record of a year of hardships and 
dangers, stands an indelible witness that the idea of duty was 
always present with him. 

He exerted his influence habitually with the men of the 
company, to prevent their doing wanton injury to the unfriendly 
inhabitants of the country which was the theatre of operations, 
denouncing such as both wrong and hurtful to themselves. 

On the 3d of October, Lieut. Price wrote and posted a letter 
to his parents, and one to his former school and room mate. 
He also learned that the 53d had orders to march early the 
ensuing morning. His superior officers and his comrades urged 
him, on account of his enfeebled condition, to remain in hospital, 
at Bolivar. He would not be persuaded to remain. 

The division (4th of the army of Gen. Grant) marched on 
the morning of the 4th, towards Corinth, and at about four 
o'clock P. M., after a weary and hurried march of some twenty 
miles, came in contact with the enemy five or six miles west of 
the Hatchie River. Slight skirmishing ensued, and the division 
bivouacked. Lieut. Price was on picket the last half of the 
night, or through the early morning hours of the 5th of October. 
At daylight, he was evidently so ill, that he was again urged to 
stay with the wagon train. His refusal was now more decided 
than before, for the division was in immediate contact with the 
enemy, and a battle inevitable. The division moved, the second 
brigade in front. The enemy retired rapidly, with but one 
effort to take up a position west of the river, from which he was 
instantly driven across the Hatchie. He then placed his guns 
in position on the bluff east of the river, and formed his line on 
the river bottom, sharply followed by the second brigade. 



26 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Here the first brigade, under Gen. Lauman, was ordered up. 
He accompanied the 53d Illinois across the bridge under a 
shower of shell, grape and canister. The regiment was ordered 
to the extreme right, to a position between the road and river ; 
here, for a third of a mile, but a few rods apart. Whilst 
executing this movement, a regiment of the second brigade, 
which had preceded it, came running back and broke through 
the line of the 53d, throwing it also into confusion. At this 
point, the Captain of Company A became separated from his 
command. Some ten or fifteen minutes time were spent, under 
a galling fire, in restoring order and reforming the line. The 
53d moved forward to its position, steadily and in good order, 
Company A being led and commanded by Lieut. Price. On 
arriving at the desired position, near a slight elevation on the 
river bottom, which afforded an imperfect shelter against the 
shower of missiles hurled by the enemy against the feeble line, 
the 53d immediately commenced firing. As Company A as- 
sumed its place in the line, its youthful commander said to the 
men : " There they are, boys — give it to them ! " 

Acting Orderly Sergeant S. B. Baldwin, of Company A, 
(who was recommended for promotion, for bravery and good 
conduct in the battle,) writes, on the 9th, to a brother of Lieut. 
Price: "We were ordered to lie down and commence firing. 
We were so exposed to the enemy's fire, that had we raised 
half way up, ours would have been the fate of many others. 
I, for one, kept low, and I kept telling the other boys to do the 
same. But William was sitting up a little behind the boys, 
telling them to keep low, and cheering them up, when he fell. 
I saw him at the moment the bullet struck him, taking effect in 
his right side and coming out under his left arm. He fell, and 
died without a struo-o-le." 

The following is an extract from a communication, dated on 
the battle-field, the day after the battle, and addressed to one 
of the Chicago papers : " In closing, allow me room for a 
tribute of respect to one of our gallant dead, Willy Price, 
lately advanced to a lieutenancy in Company A, who, for nearly 
a year, as Orderly Sergeant, has been the pride and favorite of 
his company. Ilis promotion was hailed by the whole regiment 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 27 

with joy. Courage and kindness, firmness and gentleness, 
sound judgment, and a high sense of honor, combined in him 
to make a soldier and a gentleman. No brighter offering was 
ever laid upon the altar of liberty and patriotism." 
D. F. Hitt, late Colonel of the 53d Regiment, says : 

" In relation to Lieut. Wm. D. Price, who fell at the memor- 
able battle of the Big Hatchie, while nobly and bravely com- 
manding Company A, I beg leave to say, that he was one of 
the best and most promising young men that it has ever been 
my privilege to become acquainted with. I never knew or 
heard of his drinking anything stronger than tea or coffee. I 
never heard of his playing at any kind of game. Books, tac- 
tics and his military duties, seemed to be his all-absorbing 
delight. Always in his place, and always ready to do, and do 
it willingly, too, whatever was ordered by his superior officers. 
He was kind, but strict and prompt with his men, and very 
attentive to all their wants and necessities, as well as to seeing 
that each one did his duty actively and correctly. He was one 
of the most apt scholars in military studies that it has been my 
luck to meet with, either in the army or military school, and he 
seemed by nature well calculated for camp life. I noticed, 
particularly during the five or six months' campaigning prior to 
his death, that he stood the hardships of heavy marching, and 
severe night and day, and often double, duty, much better than 
a great many men of a great deal more experience. He was 
neither clamorous nor restive, but naturally quiet and deter- 
mined. Always candid, he meant what he said. He Avas fear- 
less and brave, and was esteemed and admired both by the 
officers and men, especially the officers of our regiment, and 
his loss deeply mourned by all." 

No superior ofiicer impugned his fidelity or efficiency, and 
the privates of the company gave afi"ecting testimony to the 
goodwill they bore him. One of them writes, four days after 
the battle, in which he fell : " His loss is moui-ned by every 
man in our company ; kind to all, he showed the man in all his 
actions." Another manly and brave soldier, who followed his 
lead in battle, who was near him, and saw him killed, said 
quietly and feelingly to a friend : "If there was ever an angel 
on earth, Willy was one." 

It is due to his memory to state, that from the vices and 
indulgences which sully so many otherwise estimable and brave 
soldiers, and the prevalence of which in the army is the cause 



28 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

of uncounted calamities, he was wholly exempt. So conscien- 
tious was he in this respect, that he persistently declined all 
share in the amusement of card playing, the almost universal 
resort for relief of the monotony of camp life, assigning as his 
reason, that if he became fond of it, the consequent indulgence 
would interfere with his duties. His recourse for occupation in 
leisure moments, which were few for him, was a professional 
book. He was continually extending his knowledge of the 
theory as well as the practice of the art of war. 

On the morning of the 6th of October, he, together with the 
other dead of the regiment, clothed as when he fell, was ten- 
derly buried by his comrades — ^his blanket constituting for him 
the only envelop at their command. His name and rank were 
traced on a board at his head. One week thereafter, loving 
hands raised the body, placed it in a metallic case, and returned 
with it to Bolivar the same night. 

On the 14th October, Company A, and members of other 
companies, of the 53d Regiment, attended at the railroad depot. 
Gen. Lauman, Commandant of the Post, also came and assumed 
"the office of directing the transfer of the body to the car. He 
had before said to the friends who had it in charge : " He was 
a gallant officer, a very gallant officer ; he died in the per- 
formance of his duty." 

An escort of young men received and took charge of the 
body, at Ottawa, on the morning of the 17th, at three o'clock. 
And on the 18th, crowned with the victor's wreath, and envel- 
oped in the folds of the flag in defence of which he died, he 
was borne from the Episcopal Church, again by friendly hands, 
to a grave in the cemetery amongst his kindred. 

Thus perished, before he had completed his twentieth year, 

a soldier, who promised to become an ornament and support to 

his country. Like Fillan, the young son of Fingal, on his first 

battle-field, he has fallen without his fame. 

" His leaf has perished in the green, 

And while we breathe beneath the sun, 
The world, which credits what is done, 
Is cold to all that might have been." 




I'o i-o N i; h scoi'i'. 



MAKTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 29 



COLONEL SCOTT. 

" He died too early," is the fitting thought of those who 
knew the young Colonel of the Zouaves. 

Joseph R. Scott was born in Brantford, C. W., in 1838, of 
Scotch parentage, from whom he inherited the valorous spirit 
and untiring energy of that never-conquered race. He came 
to the United States when he was twelve years of age, and not 
long thereafter engaged in what he had fixed as his pursuit in 
life — mercantile business. In 1856, he commenced the forma- 
tion of the National Guard Cadets, in Chicago, afterwards 
famous throughout the country as the -United States Zouaves. 
In the early progress of the organization, the lamented Ells- 
worth came to Chicago, and Scott, finding in him a kindred 
spirit, pressed him to accept the Captaincy, while he acted as 
Lieutenant. Thus it was that these two, lacking what in certain 
circles is considered the one thing without which all others fail 
— a military education — laid the foundation of a fame that will 
remain when the schools shall perish from memory. Not that 
military education has not its uses, but that it has its abuses, 
and that many are so endowed by nature as to lay down rules for 
education, and transcend the routine of meaner minds. Military 
genius, when coupled with energy and valor, is more than the 
equal of military skill, science or education, call it by what name 
you will. This is what they possessed in an eminent degree ; and 
when the record of valor is made up, side by side with the noblest 
of the land will appear the names of Scott and Ellsworth ! 

A few days after the firing upon Sumter, Scott was elected 
Colonel of a three-months regiment, composed largely of the 
Zouaves and the Chicago Highland Guard. He was one of the 
youngest colonels in the service, being only about twenty-two ; 
but superiority in skill and capacity were conceded him by his 
seniors, and his regiment was held to be the best drilled in the 
department. This regiment, at the end of " the three months' 
service," was reorganized "for three years or the war;" and 
at this juncture, Scott's characteristic generosity again shone 
out : though the choice of his regiment for colonel, he voluntarily 



30 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

• 

gave way to John B. Turcliin, a veteran warrior, and became 
second in command. What a scathing comment on those who 
seek preferment through subterfuge and knavery. Scott's first 
and last thought was his country and the 19th. Under this 
leadership, his regiment took the field. Their name was a 
household terror to rebels — they fell like an avenging Nemesis. 
More than once they were denounced by the enemies of the 
Government for having inaugurated in their department the 
rule not to starve where there was enough and to spare in the 
hands of armed rebels, and hoary villains and cowardly assas- 
sins, with rebel instincts, were mean enough to charge them as 
robbers and murderers ; but to those who knew the glorious 
19th and Jo. Scott, such wicked charges had no foothold of 
belief. The 19th went on, and left some of its brave boys in 
Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama — not to be for- 
gotten, but to draw the hearts of a nation saved to the scenes 
of its suffering and the birth of its immortality : thus 
" The workmen die, but the work goes bravely on." 
In August, 1862, Turchin having been promoted to a briga- 
diership, Scott again became the Colonel of the 19th, in which 
position (though at times acting as commander of a brigade) he 
continued to the time of his death. The battle of Stone River, 
so fearful in its character and so grand in its results, wove a 
garland of immortality for Scott. He had been holding the 
impetuous valor of his men in cheek during the slowly passing 
hours of the bloody strife —their deep murmurs were heard as 
they gave vent to their disappointment in not being permitted 
to share the glory of the field — when, in an agony of despairing 
hope, the voice of the General in command was heard ringing 
all over the field, "Who'll save the left?" Before the echo 
had died out, the exultant voice of Scott was heard in reply — 
"the 19th Illinois!" and in an instant, leaping from his horse, 
waving his sword overhead, he dashed onward, shouting " for- 
ward, 19th!" "double quick!" "charge bayonets!" The 
brave fellows, with their wild, quick, Zouave cry, rushed to the 
rescue, and the enemy fled in wild dismay — as clouds fly before 
the hurricane. The left was saved, but the 19th lost what it 
loved next to its country's weal — Scott fell, mortally wounded, 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 31 

at the head of his cohimn. He was removed to his home in Chi- 
cago shortly afterward, was carefully nursed by his devoted wife 
and anxious-hoping friends, and had all the help that surgical 
science and skilful treatment could afford, but all of no avail. He 
died from the effects of his wound on the 8tli of July, 1863. 

" He lias fought, his last battle ; 
He sleeps his last sleep ; 
No sound can wake him to glory again :" 

Yet how fondly we linger at his tomb and almost refuse to 
believe him dead. His noble, manly form — his flashing eye 
and joyous laugh come back upon us with such counterfeit of 
life, that we fail to realize that he is dead. 

In looking back, we see in him no ordinary man, but one pos- 
sessing a something which made him different from his fellows — 
possessing a divine appointment to work more mightily the ma- 
chinery of the age and to give new impulses to life. Such as he 
are not, as many say, the creatures of circumstances — they are 
not the mere uprising of the moment : they are the workmen of 
such scenes as the American people have been passing through — 

•' Time's rushing loom they are seated before, 
To weave the divinity's life-breathing robe," — 

circumstances bring them out to view, and afford a field for 
their energy and God-given vocation. 

While as a soldier we might linger over his memory, there 
are other traits in which he is equally dear to our hearts. 
He was a good son of a loving mother, a fond husband of an 
affectionate wife, and the father of a beautiful child, and to 
them the loss is irreparable. Every thought that goes back to 
his character and glorious death, opens up the wounds of their 
hearts afresh. They see not so much the faithful soldier — the 
country's pride — as the loving heart. They almost forget the 
eye that kindled in wrath as it waked to the presence of the 
country's foe, in the eye that dwelt in fondness upon the do- 
mestic hearth. Thus the lightning that gilds the cloud, and 
adds terror to the angry storm, reveals to the weary traveler 
the abode of hospitality. His character, like the cloud of old, 
was darkness to his enemies, but a pillar of light to his friends, 
and he is but one of many the country weeps for in this her 
day of regeneration. 



32 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 

As deeds of valor inspire with fervor the poetic imagery of 
the muse, and in order that the glory of the 19th Illinois, with 
their brave leader and companions in arms who fell at Murfrees- 
boro, should be perpetuated, the following " Battle Scene" has 
been written by R. Tompkins, and set to soul-stirring strains by 
Geo. F. Root : 

"WHO'LL SAVE THE LEFT?" 

Thvo' two long days the battle raged 

In front of Murfreesboro, 
And cannon balls tore up the earth, 

As plows turn up the furrow ; 
Brave soldiers, by the hundred, fell, 

In fierce assault and sally, 
While bursting shell hiss'd, scream'd and fell, 

Like demons in the valley. 

The Northman and the Southron met, 

In bold, defiant manner — 
Now vict'ry perched on Union flag, 

And now on rebel banner ; 
But, see ! upon the Union's left, 

Bear down, in countless numbers. 
With shouts that seem to wake the hills 

From their eternal slumbers. 

The rebel hosts, whose iron rain 

Beats down our weaker forces. 
And covers all the battle plain 

With torn and mangled corses ; 
Still onward press the rebel hordes 

More boldly, fiercer, faster, 
But Negley's practiced eye discerns 

The swift and dread disaster. 

"Who '11 save the left?" his voice rang out, 

Above the roar of battle, 
" The Nineteenth !" shouted Colonel Scott, 

Amid the muskets rattle ; 
"The Nineteenth be it— make the charge !" 

Quick as the word was given. 
The Nineteenth fell upon the foe. 

As lightning falls from heaven. 

Over the stream they went, into the fight. 
Cutting their way on the left and the right. 
Unheeding the storm of the shot and the shell, 
Unheeding the fate of their comrades, who fell : 
Onward they sped, like the fierce lightning's flash — 
Onward they sped, with a tornado's crash — 
Onward they sped, like the bolts of the thunder, 
Resistlessly crushing the rebel hosts under, 
'Till, wild in their ten-or, they scatter'd and fled, 
Leaving heaps upon heaps, of their dying and dead ; 
And the shout that went up with the set of the sun. 
Told the charge was triumphant, the great battle won. 




MAJCiK CUAKK. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 33 



MAJOR CLARK. 

Major Alpheus Clark was born in Seneca county, Ohio, on 
the 30th of April, 1823. In 1837, he removed from there to 
Lyndon, Whiteside county, Illinois, and in 1850, left for Cali- 
fornia. He returned to Lyndon after an absence of three years, 
well satisfied with his trip. He was married the following 
winter, and remained in that place a loved and highly esteemed 
citizen, strictly temperate and religious, and of very strong anti- 
slavery principles, he being one of the old abolitionists at a 
time when that party was very unpopular. Great firmness of 
character was the chief feature of his mind, that displayed itself 
more forcibly in actions than in words. As Captain of the 
Home Guards of Lyndon, he heard the trumpet sound of war, 
and love of patriotism led him on the path of duty. 

In August, 1861, he, in connection with Capt. Clendenin, 
raised a company in Whiteside county for Farnsworth's 8th 
Illinois Cavalry. When the regimental election for officers 
took place at St. Charles, Capt. Clendenin being elected Major, 
Lieut. Clark was unanimously chosen Captain of Company C. 
Just before the battle of Beverly Ford, his recommendation for 
the appointment of Major of his regiment was forwarded to the 
Governor of Illinois, which was confirmed, and his commission 
issued, to take rank from the 24th of May, 1863. It was sent 
to the regiment, but did not reach him until after his death, 
which occurred on the 5th of July, 1863. 

Capt. Clark's company was one of the four companies which 
were doing picket duty on the right of the army, and bore the 
brunt of the attack of Stonewall Jackson's advance on the 26th 
of June, 1862, from 8 a. m. to 3 p. m., being then compelled to 
fall back before the superior force of the enemy. 

He was with the army of the Potomac in its advance on 
Manassas ; followed its successes and reverses through the 
peninsular campaign ; was at Williamsburg, in the seven days' 
fight in the front of Richmond, in the retreat to the James 
River ; was with it in Maryland, engaging the enemy at Pools- 
ville, Barnestown, Middletown and Boonsboro, and with the 



34 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

advance into Virginia, fighting Stuart's Cavalry at Philamont, 
Union, Upperville and Barbour's Cross Roads, and had a part 
in the memorable battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. 

In the battle of Beverly Ford, one of the most desperate 
cavalry conflicts of the war, it devolved upon Capt. Clark, as 
senior captain, to command the gallant 8th, all the field ofiicers 
being sick or on detached service. With a coolness that has 
made him proverbial, he led his men into the fight, and when 
by reason of a rash charge against heavy odds, the 8th New 
York Cavalry were driven back in a confusion which threatened 
to bring panic and disaster to the Avhole army, Capt. Clark 
intrepidly checked the disorder of our own men and broke the 
advancing columns of the enemy. It was at this moment that 
a rebel Major, leading a squadron of cavalry, rode within thirty 
paces of the Captain, and halting, presented his revolver and 
fired. The fire was returned by Capt. Clark, and it has been 
told by an eye-witness, that nothing could exceed the perfect 
coolness and iionchalance with which the two foemen continued 
to exchange their leaden compliments. A shot from the Major, 
however, took effect in Capt. Clark's left hand, disabling him 
from managing his horse, and he was forced to give over the 
command to Capt. Forsyth. 

Captain Clark's wound gave him but little uneasiness. He 
was sent to the Seminary Hospital in Georgetown, D. C, to 
await the slow process of healing, and was, on application, 
granted leave of absence to visit his home. On examination, 
however, it was found necessary to perform an operation on his 
hand, to remove the bones which proved to be bi'oken. 

A little circumstance may here be mentioned to show the 
spirit of the man : Major Beveridge, of the same regiment, who 
was sick in the same room, left it in the morning, and gave as 
his reason for doing so, that he disliked to see the operation 
performed. "I could stand it," said the Major, "if he ivoxild 
only complain, but to see him endure the torture without a 
groan, as he will be sure to do, is more than I wish to look at." 

The operation Avas apparently successful, and the wound 
seemed in a fair way of healing. He was, however, afilicted 
with chills for a few days, but no apprehension felt for his 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 35 

safety, until it soon became evident that the blood had been 
insidiously absorbing the matter from the wound, and that his 
system was badly poisoned. Everything that science or skill 
could suggest was done for him, but the death-rattle in his 
throat too plainly told that he was past all medical remedy. 
He received the announcement with the same calm demeanor 
that he would receive an order in camp. He expressed a sub- 
missive obedience to the will of God, and a christian readiness 
to die. He spoke feelingly of his home and family, and gave 
orders respecting his effects and the disposition to be made of 
his body. His last rational words were of his beloved wife and 
children. Later in the day he became delirious, and, with a 
face wreathed with smiles, he was, in imagination, again in the 
saddle at the head of his squadron. He continued to talk 
almost to the moment of his death : now placing his men on 
picket ; now forming in line of battle ; now meeting a charge 
of the enemy ; now ordering an advance ; urging his men for- 
ward ; cautioning against surprise ; ordering an arrest of those 
who faltered in their duty, or encouraging those wdio were 
battling gallantly. Like the exiled Corsican on St. Helena, he 
died a true soldier ; but, unlike him, he was moved by patriotism, 
not ambition. His last words were — "We'll march them up 
by fours." 

Kind words soothed his dying moments, as quietly, calmly, 
and with scarcely a struggle, he breathed his last breath out ; 
fond hands smoothed his pillow ; fair fingers plucked beautiful 
flowers to rest on his pulseless breast, and stout hearts heaved 
heavily as his spirit took its flight. He was beloved by all who 
knew him ; commended as one of the coolest and bravest men 
in his regiment, and without an enemy in the army. 

Major Clark's remains were taken from the Seminary Hospi- 
tal, Georgetown, to his beloved home in Illinois, where, 
"After life's fitful fever, he sleeps well." 



36 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

JOHN HAKRIS KINZIE, 

MASTER ON THE GUNBOAT, " MOUND CITY." 

John Harris Kinzie was born on the 20th October, 1838. 
His father was John H. Kinzie, the oklest living citizen of 
Chicago, having been brought to this frontier post in the year 
1803. His mother was Juliette A., daughter of Arthur W. 
Magill, late of Middletown, Conn. From his earliest childhood, 
John evinced a passion for machinery and things pertaining to 
the application of mechanical principles. Before he was six 
years old he would lie upon the floor with his paper and pencil, 
copying from a book which had been given him, the engraving 
of a steam engine, placing the A, B, C, etc., to mark the different 
parts ; after which he would seize upon some one to listen to him 
while he explained which was the piston, which a valve, with 
the mode of their operation, until he fancied he had made the 
whole quite plain. 

To develope and improve this taste, his parents, after a few 
years passed at Jubilee School, (Peoria co.,) placed him under 
the care of Rev. Roswell Park, D.D., of Racine College, and 
afterwards sent him to the Polytechnic Institute at Troy. He 
had, subsequently, the advantage of instruction from Professors 
Peck and Trowbridge, at Ann Arbor, Mich. He acquired a 
more familiar knowledge of the practical application of mechan- 
ical science, while with H. Berdan, Esq., making the tour of 
the chief commercial cities, with a view of establishing the famed 
Mechanical Bakeries, and in the employ of the Illinois Central 
and Rock Island Railroads. 

The energy and enthusiasm with which he threw his whole 
soul into each pursuit, attracted the notice and engaged the in- 
terest of even the gray-haired observer, while the amount of 
scientific and philosophical knowledge he had acquired, often 
prompted the remark, " I must see that boy, and talk with him 
again." 

His marriage with Miss Elvina Janes of Racine, took place 
on the 21st April, 1861 — three days after the first Proclamation 




JOHN HARRIS KINZIE. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



of the President calling for volunteers. His brother, and most 
of his young friends had enlisted. John's mind was in a state 
of doubt and perplexity — ''I feel as if I must go," he said, "and 
yet, as if I ought to wait a while." 

In the month of June following, his father was appointed 
Paymaster in the Army, and John accompanied him as his 
clerk for a few succeeding months, visiting Washington, St. 
Louis, Cairo, and other posts. Notwithstanding, however, the 
aptitude for business which he displayed, and the facility with 
which he acquired the necessary routine, he found the employ- 
ment irksome — nothing but mechanical or engineering pursuits 
would satisfy a natural bent, rendered still more determined by 
cultivation. 

He quitted his clerkship for a service on one of the govern- 
ment transports at Cairo, and it was while here that he attract- 
ed the notice of Admiral (then Commodore) Foote, who conferred 
upon him the appointment of Master in the Navy. He received 
his commission on the 4th January, and having, two years pre- 
viously, passed his examination for the Navy, reported for duty 
on board the gunboat Cincinnati. 

The "Mound City" was still in the course of construction, 
and before she was entirely completed, John was transferred to 
her, to assist in superintending her preparation for service. On 
the 23d February, he was able to announce in a letter to his 
parents, " The Cincinnati, with Flag-Officer Foote on board, 
has weighed anchor, and signalled us to follow. We're bound 
for Dixie." Some accident to the machinery, hoAvever, obliged 
them to return from the Cumberland River, which had been 
their first destination. Their next goal was Memphis. The 
progress of the fleet from Cairo to Memphis is matter of history. 
John's reports to those he loved best, were always of the most 
gay and cheerful character. He knew that after the fearful 
accident to the Essex in Tennessee River, the hearts of those 
who loved him were never at ease on his account, and he strove 
to convince them that there was no danger for him, even while, 
as it afterwards appeared, fully appreciating the defects in the 
construction of the Mound City, and living under the shadow of 
her cominsf doom. 



38 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

From " Above Island No. 10," on the 29tli March, he writes : 
" The rebels have fired at our boats for fourteen days and thir- 
teen nights, from five different batteries, in all thirty guns, and 
have never hit us yet. Pretty poor shooting at If miles!" 
And again : " We have not fired a gun for nearly three days, 
and everything looks very quiet. The rebels finding that rifled 
42-8 inch and 13 inch shell had an injurious efi'ect on the human 
system, coolly moved their camps out of the way, built casemates 
to their mud forts, sunk their floating batteries to the water's 
edge, and during the night they build up what the mortars tear 
down by daylight." The Federal forces entered "No. 10, that 
once stronghold of secesh," on the 11th April. A demonstration 
was made by the enemy on the 9th May. It was described in 
few words : " The rebels came up this morning, but the Cin- 
cinnati, Cairo and Mound City drove them back again." 

The first serious engagement of the Mound City was at Plum 
Point Bend, on the 10th May. Describing this, John writes : 
" We had a pretty lively time last Saturday. We fought ankle 
deep in water." (The Mound City, it will be recollected, was run 
into by the rebel ram Van Dorn and sunk.) " The Sponger at 
one of my guns was shot, and I jumped into the port and 
rammed the shell home — when that gun was fired, it crippled 
the ram. I had my hands full, I can tell you." 

The Mound City was, providentially, got into shallow water, 
so that, although the officers and crew prepared " to leave their 
good ship," and possibly even life itself, they escaped for the 
present. 

For his conduct in this aff'air, John was openly complimented 
by his superior officers. The testimony of one is : " In the 
service he was the bravest of the brave. I can bear witness to his 
coolness in action, his gallantry, and his efficiency. We have 
had many opportunities of seeing him placed in trying circum- 
stances, in which he acquitted himself bravely and honorably." 

The boat was brought up to Cairo for repairs, and when in 
order, proceeded, without further adventures of importance,' to 
Memphis. 

To the loving friends at home, all danger to their brave boy 
seemed now over. Memphis had been looked upon as the haven 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



39 



at which perils and hardships should cease. They were, 
therefore, not prepared to hear of a new tour of duty — an expe- 
dition to raise the blockade by rebel gunboats of the Arkansas 
and White Rivers. The boats assigned to this service were the 
Mound City, as flag-ship, Capt. Kilty, the St. Louis, Lexington, 
and the tug Spitfire. 

They reached the " Arkansas Cut-ofi","* on the White River, 
on the morning of the 14th June, where the tug, being sent 
sixteen miles up the river to reconnoitre, made prize of the 
magnificent steamer Clara Dolson. The fleet was accompanied 
by the transports New National, White Cloud, and Jacob Mus- 
selman, bearing the 46th Indiana regiment. Col. G. N. Fitch, 
whose object was to capture the transports which the rebels 
had run up White River. 

The fleet cautiously and carefully ascended the stream, infor- 
mation having been received that the enemy had a battery or 
series of batteries about 80 or 90 miles above the mouth. These 
batteries, which were situated on a bluff" in the bend of the river, 
were reached on the morning of the 17th June. Of the en- 
gagement which there took place, the particulars are probably 
unknown to few throughout our land. 

The Mound City had the lead, and the St. Louis kept up a 
spirited firing, being unhit by the enemy's balls. At length 
the Mound City moved on, past the loAver battery, supposing 
that, as it had slackened its fire, all existing danger was over. 
Both boats ceased their firing, fearing that the balls might hit, 
instead of the enemy, our own brave Indiana troops who had 
landed below, to attack the batteries. While thus lying, with 
her stern a little to the southern shore, awaiting anxiously the 
result of Col. Fitch's movement, the Mound City was struck by 
a plunging shot from the upper battery. It passed through the 
iron-lined casement, struck and exploded the steam-drum of the 
engine, instantly filling the boat with the scalding vapor. 

John was standing upon the drum at the moment. " How he 
got into the water," said a survivor, "I never could conceive, 
but the first thing I knew after I reached it, he was swimming 

* It is called the ^Vh^te River Cut-off', on the Arkansas River, and Arkansas Cut-off, on 
the White River. 



40 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



near me. I observed that the rebels were drawn up upon the 
bank, and were firing at us as we were in the water. I called 
to him to make for the lee of the boat as I was doing, but I 
think he was trying to get off his belt and sword, which hindered 
him in SAvimming, and he made for the small boats instead. I 
saw several throw up their hands and go down as the shot 
struck them in the water." 

The boats of the Conestoga and Lexington put off to the res- 
cue of the victims. Shots were fired at them, but the brave souls 
on board counted not their lives dear, so they might save their 
suffering comrades. As John Avas lifted from the water, three 
bullets struck him, taking effect in each arm, and in the hips ; 
another passed through the handkerchief which an officer, his 
friend, Avas dipping into the water in order to bathe his face. 
Every kind attention was lavished upon him, for, to use the 
words of the sailor quoted above, " Everybody loved him and 
wanted to do something for him." 

Col. Fitch's bayonet charge upon the batteries had been suc- 
cessful, and the men who but a short time before had revelled in 
their Avanton barbarity, Avere now prisoners, or wounded, or gone 
to their long account. This news was told to John as he lay in 
his agony. " Have Ave taken the fort ?" he asked. On receiving 
an answer in the affirmative, "then," said he, "I am content to 
die." The friends who had so tenderly ministered to him, 
saw him placed with oth^^s on board the Jacob Musselman, 
under Capt. Huntoon, to be conveyed to Memphis, and thence, 
if he survived, to Cairo, where he hoped his young Avife Avould 
meet him, in compliance with a letter he had dictated to her. A 
fcAV lines from the pen of a loving friend will complete the sad 
picture : 

" There is something touchingly beautiful in the record of his 
death, as made by one who was with him at the time, which 
gives assurance that his last moments Averc those of peace. 
Says this writer : ' At first it was thought he would recover, but 
he failed rapidly toAvards morning, and at four o'clock, on the 
morning of the 18th, just as the sun was kissing the tree-tops 
on the banks of the great river, his spirit passed away.' " 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 41 



GENERAL FARNSWORTH. 

Brigadier General Elon J. Farnsworth was born in Green 
Oak, Livingston county, Michigan, on the 30th of July, 1837. 
In 1854, his father, James P. Farnsworth, removed from Michi- 
gan to Rockton, Winnebago co., Illinois, where he still resides 
— a farmer. His only brother died in Michigan before their 
removal to Illinois, and shortly after their removal his mother 
also died. In 1855, his father sent him to the university at 
Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he remained until the winter of 
1857-8, when he joined the army of Gen. Johnston (then on its 
way to Utah, to suppress the Mormon difficulties in that terri- 
tory) as an assistant in the Quartermaster's Department. He 
remained with the army in that distant frontier and in traveling 
over the Western territories, until the breaking out of the 
Rebellion in 1861. Love of adventure, buffalo hunting, etc., 
frequently led him to make long journeys on horseback through 
the mountains and over the plains of the " Far West," and it 
was there doubtless that he gained such a mastery of the horse 
as subsequently gave him the reputation of being "the best 
rider in the army." 

News of the Rebellion reached him in the summer of 1861, 
and he immediately hastened home to join the 8th Illinois 
Cavalry, which his uncle. Gen. John F. Farnsworth, Avas then 
organizing. He was made Battalion Quartermaster, but soon 
thereafter, by an election, he was promoted to the Captaincy of 
Co. K of that celebrated regiment. During all the battles of 
the Army of the Potomac, he never missed a fight or skirmish 
in which his troop were engaged, and which are said to be 
forty-one in all. 

He was brave and daring to a fault, and so kind and con- 
siderate to his men, that he early became their pride and boast. 
Whenever a scout or reconnoisance was to be made, Captain 
Farnsworth was almost invariably placed at its head, and so 



42 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

intrepid was he in his attacks, and so watchful in his movements, 
that liis name became a terror to every bushwhacker along the 
lines. 

For his skill and daring on one occasion, the folloAving com- 
plimentary order was issued : 

Hradquarters 1st Cav. Div., ) 
March 31, 1863. \ 

General Orders, JYo. 15: 

I. The General commanding takes this occasion to thank Capt. Farusworth 
of the 8th 111. Cavalry, for the gallant and efficient manner he has performed 
the scouting duty intrusted to his charge. 'J^he score of prisoners taken from 
the enemy is largely in his favor, and the skill and adroitness displayed in the 
capture are worthy of high commendation. 

II. This order to be published at the head of each regiment in this division. 
By order, BRIG. GEN. PLEAS ANTON. 

A. J. Cohen, 
To Capt. E. J. Farnsworth, 8th 111. Cav. Capt. and A. A. G. 

The compliment was well merited, and to his genius and 
bravery much of the celebrity of the regiment is due. 

In May, 1863, Gen. Pleasanton placed him upon his staif as 
Aid, and so well pleased was he with the man, that he nominated 
him to tlie office of Brigadier General, and the news of the 
appointment reached him while on duty in the field. Our 
cavalry was then at Frederick City, INIaryland, moving tow;i*fls 
Pennsylvania in pursuit of the rebels. Gen. F. was at once 
assigned to the command of the 1st brigade of the 3d division 
of cavalry — consisting of the 1st Vermont, 1st Virginia, 5th 
New York and 18th Pennsylvania Cavalry — with a battery of 
artillery. With his brigade Gen. Farnsworth moved rapidly 
forAvard. On the 30th of June he had a severe fight with the 
rebel cavalry under Stuart, routing and defeating that celebrated 
ofiicer. 

On the 3d of July, Gen. F. was ordered by Gen. Kilpatrick, 
who commanded the 3d division of cavalry, to charge the right 
flank of the rebel army. The rebels (infantry) were posted 
behind a stone ivall, and a little in rear of the wall was still 
another fence. They also had their artillery posted in such 
manner that they could pour a deadly fire of grape and can- 
ister upon the flanks of an advancing column. Gen. F. recon- 
noitered the ground in person, and reported to Gen. Kilpatrick 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 43 

that a charge at that point would be madness, and would only 
result in the loss of his men. General K., however, ordered 
the charge to be made. The gallant young hero replied : 
" Very well, I'll not send my men where I do not go with 
them." The correspondent of the New York Times, who was 
with the cavalry, gives the following account of this terrible 
charge, one of the bravest, most gallant, but most disastrous, of 
any during the war : 

"The 1st Vermont, Col. Preston; 1st Virginia, Maj. Copehart; and the 
18th Pennsylvania Cavahy, Col. Brinton, — were in position to charge. The 
1st Vermont, 1st Virginia, and a squadron of the 18th Pennsylvania, led by 
Gen. Farnsworth, dashed forward at the word until the stone wall was reached. 
A few men pulled the rail fence away from the top of the wall. Gen. Farns- 
worth leaped his horse over, and was followed by the 1st Vermont — the 
enemy breaking before them, and taking a position behind the second fence. 
The few rods between the two fences, where our men crossed, was a fearfully 
dangerous place, the little force receiving the concentrated fire of three lines 
from front and both flanks. The witnesses of the movement stood in breath. 
less silence, their blood running cold, as the chargers gained the second fence, 
Man after man was seen to fall, Gen. Farnsworth among the rest. • He is 
killed!' gasped many a one, looking at tliat fatal spot. But no — that tall form 
and slouched hat are his — he lives — and all breathe again. His horse had 
been killed. A soldier gives him his horse. The General again mounts, and 
dashes on. The enemy here make a more formidable stand, but are driven 
away, and the whole force go dashing, reeling over the fence in a whirlpool of 
shot and shell, such as is seldom ever witnessed even by soldiers. The con- 
stant roar of musketry and artillery on the main field gave the scene a peculiar 
grandeur. It was fearfully grand. The second fence crossed, and new fires 
were opened upon this brave band. To retreat at that point was certain 
death, and the only chance of safety was to advance, and advance they did for 
between one and two miles, to the rear of the rebel army, in sight of the 
coveted train, but at what a cost! Dispersing, the men returned under a 
galling fire as best they could. A few did not get back to their command for 
hours — many never came. The list of missing graduall}' lessened, and hope 
led us to look anxiously for the return of Gen. Farnsworth; and when, with 
morning's dawn, no tidings from him were heard, then hope said he was 
wounded — a prisoner — he has been left seriously, perhaps dangerously, 
wounded at some house by the roadside. Vain hope! Messengers were sent 
in every direction to search for the missing spirit. It did not seem possible 
that he could be dead, and yet so it was. He fell just after crossing the 
second fence, his body pierced with five wounds. There some of the Vermont 
boys found him two days after, (the rebels having fallen back.) The brave, 
noble and generous Farnsworth has gone to his last rest, and the sod which 



44 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



covers bis grave has been wet by the tears of those who loved and honored 
him while living. His name will ever be held in remembrance by every 
member of the 3d division." 

Gen. Farnsworth was possessed of rare beauty both of person 
and of soul. No man who knew him failed to admire his great 
social attractions, nor will they soon forget his tall, athletic 
frame, dark flashing eye and finely moulded features. There 
fell no braver soldier on that field of carnage. 

The following letters are from that excellent and gallant 
officer, Major Gen. Pleasanton, who commanded the cavalry 
corps, to the uncle of the subject of this sketch, and Captain 
Drummond, of Gen. P.'s staff", who superintended his burial, 
and announced his fate to his friends : 

Headqrs. Oat. Corps, Army of the Potomac, ^ 
July 6th, 1863. \ 

Gen. J. F. Farnsworth: 

Dear General: I deeply regret to announce to you the death of Brig. Gen. 
Farnsworth, late Captain 8th Illinois Cavalry. He was killed while leading a 
charge of his brigade against the enemy's infantry in the recent battle of 
Gettysburg. His death was glorious. He made the first grand charge against 
the enemy's infantry — broke them — when found, his body was pierced with 
five bullets, nearly a mile in rear of the enemy's line. ^^^ 

lie has been buried in the cemetery at Gettysburg, and the grave is properly 
marked. The enemy stripped the body to the undershirt — an unheard of 
piece of vandalism, as the General was in his proper dress. 

Accept my warmest sympathy. You know my estimate of our late friend 
and companion in arms. We have, however, a consolation in his brilliant 
deeds in the grandest battle of the war. Very truly yours, 

A. PLEASANTON. 



Gen. J. F. Farnsworth: 

Gen. : You have already heard of the death of your nephew, Gen. E. J. F., 
killed in the action on the 3d. I was with him not five minutes before he fell, 
gallantly charging the enemy's infantry at the head of two of his regiments. 
His body was brought in last night, and at 3 a. m. of the day, I buried him 
with one of his captains, each in a good, rough box, in the Gettysburg Ceme- 
tery. He was shot through the pelvis, and had two balls through the left leg, 
one of which shattered his ankle. 

Farnsworth's loss is mourned by all. He had just got his star, and fell in a 
gallant endeavor to prove to his nevv men his right to wear it. While by the 
light of a single lantern I dug his grave, instinctively the lines of Sir John 
Moore's burial at Corunna came in my mind. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 45 

" We buried bim darkly at dead of niglit, 
The sods with our bayonets turning:, 
By the moonbeam's misty struggling light, 
And our lanterns dimly burning. 

" Slowly and sadly we laid him down, 

From the field of his fame fresh and gory ; 
AVe carved not a line, we raised not a stone, 
But we left him alone in his glory." 

T. DRUMMOND, 

Capt. and Prov. Marshal Cavalry Corps. 

In July, Gen. J. F. Farnsworth visited Gettysburg, disinterred 
the remains of his nephew, and after embalming, removed them 
to Illinois, Avhere now sleeps the heroic brave. He rests, to be 
remembered with the honored dead who have fallen in defence 
of their country, and a nation mourns the inestimable loss. 



46 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL SMITH. 

Col. Melancthon Smith was born in Rochester, N. Y., on 
the 25th of March, 1828. His father was a military man, and 
served his country as captain at the battle of Queenstown, in 
the last war with Britain, where he received much commenda- 
tion for his skill and bravery. He dying while his son was a 
child of only a few summers, young Smith was brought up in 
the family of his uncle, Melancthon Starr, in New York city, 
where he remained until he was about twenty years of age. He 
then became connected with a mercantile house, and traded 
extensively in the Southern and Western States. In 1854, he 
settled in Rockford, and -commenced business as a merchant. 
Finding in this employment insufficient scope for his active and 
nobly-ambitious spirit, he abandoned, after a few years, the 
pursuit of trade, and devoted himself to the study of law, for 
the science of which he possessed an ardent love and a fine 
mental adaptation. He studied in the office of Judge Ans&n S. 
Miller, of Rockford. Being admitted to the bar in 1859, he 
engaged with ardor and ability in the practice of his profession, 
till the political campaign of 1860, with the momentous issues 
then at stake, called him away from professional to public and 
patriotic effi)rts for the redemption of the country. He threw 
his whole soul into this campaign, speaking earnestly and elo- 
quently on the great questions of the day, in the counties of 
Winnebago, Boone and Jo Davies. 

The winter of 1860 he spent in Washington. The following 
spring he received the appointment as Post Master of Rockford, 
in consideration of the valuable services he had rendered. Upon 
the call for 75,000 men, he made an effiart to arrange his busi- 
ness, so that he might raise a company, but was unsuccessful : 
he, however, spent time and money freely in assisting the late 
Col. Nevins, of the 11th Regiment, to raise and equip his com- 
pany. When the next call came, it found him ready and 
anxious to do his part. He obtained permission from the P. 0. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 47 

Department to leave his office, and by his efforts raised, in a 
few weeks, a company of 100, which included some of the most 
sterling and wealthy men of the county, and joined the 45th, 
or "Lead Mine Regiment," at Galena. He was soon elected 
Major, and drilled the entire regiment — alone — for a year. 
The efficiency of the 45th has proved how well the task was 
accomplished. 

It was a remarkable circumstance, that some years before, 
when there was no speck or thought of war in this country, he 
had, from his own military instinct, joined the company drilled 
by the lamented Col. Ellsworth; and the knowledge and skill 
in military tactics learned under that distinguished master, 
availed him much afterwards, and contributed not a little to 
his usefulness and distinction in the field. 

Col. Smith was present at the battles of Fort Henry, Donel- 
son and Shiloh, and at the siege of Corinth, Gen. Logan gave 
him command of the advance skirmishers for four days. He 
was the only Major that Gens. McClernand and Logan men- 
tioned in their official reports, none below the rank of Colonel 
being usually reported. They call him a "brave and efficient 
officer — worthy of any position assigned to him." 

Soon after the occupation by our army of Western Tennessee, 
he was appointed Provost Marshal of Jackson, in that State, 
and remained there for several months, discharging the duties 
of his trust with fidelity and vigor. Afterwards, he was trans- 
ferred to a larger and more important post, and appointed 
Provost Marshal of the district of Memphis. Of the fidelity 
and success with which for three months he discharged the 
laborious and trying duties of this office, no better testimonial 
can be given than the fact, that when, in accordance with his 
own expressed desire, he had been removed to his regiment at 
Vicksburg, a delegation of the merchants of Memphis Avaited on 
Gen. Grant Avith a petition that he be recalled to that important 
post, which request was immediately complied with. 

Though fully aware that an effort was being made for his 
return, and that his recall was more than probable, such was 
his desire to rejoin his regiment and participate in the impend- 
ing battles, that he did not wait to know the result, but started 



48 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 



immediately on his first order for Vicksburg ; and though he 
learned soon after his arrival, that Gen. Grant ordered his re- 
call, he sought and obtained permission to remain until after 
tlie fall of Vicksburg, coveting the danger and glory of the 
battle-field more than the immunities of civil office and the 
comforts of domestic life, which, in the intervals of toil, he 
could there enjoy. 

On the afternoon of Thursday, June 25th, a corps in Gen. 
Logan's division was ordered to storm Fort Hill, in the rear 
of Vicksburg. The assault was successful, but attended with a 
fearful sacrifice of life. Foremost in the fray was the gallant 
45th Illinois, and foremost of these was Lieut. Col. Smith, who 
had command in the absence of the superior officer. At the 
very beginning of the engagement, while in the act of cheering 
on his men, he fell wounded in the head by three balls, one of 
which entered and lodged in the brain. He immediately felt 
in himself that his wound was mortal, and expressed his con- 
sciousness of the fact with the words, " I die as a true soldier, 
and as I would wish to die." 

He lingered in a state of half-consciousness for nearly three 
days, repeatedly expressing his satisfaction with his ^e, and 
his entire willingness to die for his country. He expired on 
Sunday morning, June 28th, in the 36th year of his age. His 
remains were brought to Rockford, and on the occasion of his 
funeral an eloquent discourse was delivered by the Rev. H. M. 
Goodwin, from the text — 2 Timothy, iv. 7 — " I have fought a 
good fight," 

Col. Smith possessed in an eminent degree all the qualities 
of a good soldier : courage, enthusiasm, self-devotion and fear- 
lessness of danger, supported by a firmness and fortitude and 
self-reliance that made him equal to every duty which a soldier 
is called upon to perform. Combined Avith these was a rare 
gallantry of spirit, and a noble generosity that won for him the 
respect and love of all who had enough in common with him to 
know him. One of the most marked traits of his character — 
which no one could be with him an hour without feeling — was 
his high and almost chivalrous sense of honor, showing itself by 
a quick sensibility to, and a supreme scorn of, whatever is mean 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 49 

and unAvorthy. This sprang not from a selfish fear of reproach, 
without regard to principle, but from the deep probity and 
moral rectitude of his character. He was honorable in all his 
transactions, not out of regard to some factitious code of honor, 
but because he was true to his own personal convictions. The 
sincerity of these convictions made him earnest in expressing 
and uncompromising in asserting and maintaining them, which 
exposed him often to misjudgment and unpopularity with those 
who did not appreciate their ground and honesty. 

Before deciding to enter the army, he made the question a 
subject of devout and earnest prayer, and the decision Avlien 
made was a religious consecration to the service of his country, 
expecting never to return, but to die on the field of battle. 

He was not without faults, but they were defects and imper- 
fections rather than vices, and of the worst of them it could be 
said, they "leaned to virtue's side." The life and death of this 
valiant soldier afibrds a beautiful lesson to young men, which is 
summed up in the words of the poet : 

" Be just and fear not. 
Let all the ends thou aimest at be thy country's, 
Thy God's and truth's; then, if thou tallest, 
Thou fall'st a blessed martyr." 



50 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL WRIGHT. 

Lieut. Col. Joseph C. Wright was born in Rome, Oneida 
county, N. Y., on the 7tli of January, 1821. He graduated 
at Captain Partridge's Military School, in Norwich, Vt., and 
afterward studied law, and was admitted to the bar at Oswego, 
at the early age of twenty years. About the year 1853, he 
abandoned the profession of law, and became engaged in the 
grain business, residing mostly in Chicago, although he fre- 
quently visited and maintained business relations with Oswego. 

As a lawyer, he was successful in an eminent degree, his 
natural and acquired attainments having fitted him specially 
for an advocate, and as such, he was engaged in some of the 
most important cases in the State of New York. 

As a merchant. Col. Wright's character is worthy of emula- 
tion. Engaged in a business which is in its very nature extra- 
hazardous, it was not strange, nor to his discredit, that in the 
crash of 1857 he found his name on $40,0CRrwortli of paper, 
not his own, but for which he was responsible ! To his honor, 
however, be it recorded, that every single dollar of this was 
paid, and that, too, out of his earnings since the date named. 
In all his operations he was bold and persevering ; and if they 
were not always successful, pecuniarily, they were invariably 
carried through without the loss of honor or integrity. He was 
honest to a fault, for if a doubt existed on which side the beam 
turned, it was a rule with him to decide against himself. There 
are few men in the produce trade who have handled as much 
grain in the same period, and the number is still less who have 
had fewer litigations. He never forgot that while he was a 
merchant he was still a man, and that he also professed to be a 
Christian. Even when, in the dark commercial days of 1857, 
he saw his fortune melt away like snow, he manfully gave up, 
to pay his debts, every dollar he could control, and that, too, at 
a time when creditors were generally eager to compromise on 
the first offer, and it was the custom among many to adopt the 
French motto — Sauve qui i^eut — ''Save himself who can." 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 51 

Col. Wright proved himself to be a true soldier. As a mem- 
ber of the Board of Trade, he eloquently urged the formation 
of those regiments which now bear its name, and was offered 
the Colonelcy of the first that was raised — the 72d. Being a 
civilian, however, he modestly declined the honor, and when 
offered the Lieutenant-Colonelcy, at once showed his sincerity 
by accepting it, even at a great pecuniary loss to himself and 
family. In the camp he carried with him that high gentlemanly 
bearing, kind disposition, and Christian practice, which had 
been his custom everywhere ; and while no officer was more 
sincerely loved and respected — nay, almost idolized — by his 
men, there are few who ever deserved it more. To those above 
him in station, and to those below, he was the same at all times 
and all places ; and no private can say that he was ever received 
less courteously, and his wants attended to less promptly, than 
if he had been a staff officer. During the long period from his 
enlistment till the investment of Vicksburg, the regiment did 
not meet the enemy in battle ; but on the 22d of May, when 
Gen, Grant ordered the assault on the enemy's works, owing to 
the indisposition of Col. Starring, he had to assume the entire 
command of the regiment, which he did in a manner which re- 
flects everlasting honor on his head. Not satisfied with the 
usual position of an officer, like the lamented Lyon, sword in 
hand, he led his men clear up to the rifle-pits, where he received, 
from rebel hands, his death wound. This, however, did not 
break his spirit. When visited by the correspondent of the 
Chicago Tribune in his tent, immediately after his arm had 
been amputated, he cheerfully said: "Never mind, 'Bod,' I 
have one arm left with which I can guide my horse ; the carry- 
ing of a SAVord is only for effect anyhow ;" and even later, after 
he had arrived in Chicago, he talked with the writer of this on 
the probable future scenes and events in this sanguinary struggle 
of freedom against slavery. He had nothing to say about grain, 
of prices current, or of markets. His whole conversation was 
of our country and its sacred cause — his aspirations how much 
he could accomplish for its good. In reply to a suggestion in 
reference to his condition, he said : " If God spares my life, and 
I regain my health and my country needs me, I will as cheer- 



52 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

fully give this right arm to the cause as I have already given 
my left." This patriotic yearning was denied him, and after 
sickness and suffering, he died a true soldier. 

As a citizen, Col. Wright was justly admired. Carrying with 
him everywhere his Christian character, he won hosts of friends 
among all parties. In the social circle, few had such conversa- 
tional powers, which he used in a manner free from all taint and 
corruption. But he was pre-eminently a lover of his family 
hearth, and to those wdio knew him thoroughly, the genuineness 
of his patriotism is hotter appreciated hy the fact of the sacrifice 
it was to absent himself from his own fireside. Gifted with an 
eloquence which we can say was scarcely equalled west of the 
lakes, he was, for many years, the leading speaker of the Chi- 
cago Board of Trade on all public occasions ; hut never more 
will the rooms of 'Change resound with the tones of his silvery 
voice — never more will his oratory adorn the commercial cham- 
bers of the emporium of the West. 

The Board of Trade, on learning of the death of Col. Wright, 
appointed a committee to draft resolutions of regret and to con- 
fer with the family in making arral^gements for his funeral. 
On the 7th of July, a procession, marshalled by Col. Tucker, 
marched to the house of T. B. Carter, and accompanied the 
remains from there to the Second Presbyterian Church, when, 
after service, they were conveyed to the Michigan Central Rail- 
road Depot, to be taken to Oswego. On arrival there, a some- 
what similar order of arrangements was carried out. During 
the services, however, a beautiful incident occurred which will 
be long remembered. A dove — fit emblem of the " peace Avhich 
passeth understanding" — flitted into the church, and alighting 
on the organ, seemed to shake down from its wings benediction 
on the scene, sitting fearlessly amid the Availing minors of the 
music, as if it were a messenger sent to fly up to heaven's chan- 
cery with the record of the hero's life, well spent, and freely 
given to God and his country. His body was interred in River- 
side Cemetery amid the rattling crash of musketry, to await the 
last roll call before the Great Commander. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 53 



LIEUTENANT BEALS. 

Lieut. Jedediah Beals, son of Alvord and Charlotte Beals, 
was born in Geauga county, Ohio, in June, 1836. His father, 
in the spring of 1863, became totally blind, and unable to see a 
single object. He gave two sons to the service when the Rebel- 
lion broke out — one, the subject of this sketch ; the other, dis- 
charged on a surgeon's certificate for disability, after serving 
nine months. The mother of Lieut. Beals (now deceased) was 
a sister of the late Thomas Beard, Esq., who founded the city 
of Beardstown, Cass county, Illinois. 

In 1842, Lieut. Beals emigrated Avith his father, mother, 
brother and several sisters, to Cass county. His father was a 
farmer, and his son, the Lieutenant, followed this occupation 
until the year 1857, with the exception of the time he was en- 
gaged at school. He received a good English education, the last 
of which he procured at the High School at Beardstown, under 
the superintendence of Prof. J. Barwick. In 1857, he became 
engaged in the engineer corps on the Rock Island and Alton 
Railroad. In 1860, he took a contract on the same road in 
Greene co., and finished it the same year. In March, 1861, he 
went to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, expecting to engage in the rail- 
road business in that vicinity ; but immediately upon the break- 
ing out of the Rebellion, he returned home and sought a place 
in the army. He went to Springfield, and joined the 32d Regi- 
ment Illinois Volunteers. Before the regiment left for the seat 
of war, he was furloughed, with permission to recruit ; and by 
the last of December, 1861, he had enlisted, in the vicinity of 
Beardstown, 24 men, whom he took to Carrollton, Greene co., 
and with Capt. H. W. Manning formed Company E, of which 
he was appointed 1st Lieutenant. Co. E was attached to the 
61st Regt. 111. Vols., Col. Jacob Fry, which Avas mustered into 
the service, March 7th, 1861, at Benton Barracks, Mo., and 
immediately proceeded to the theatre of war in Kentucky. The 
first time the regiment was under fire, however, was in that 
field of carnage at Shiloh. 



54 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

At the battle of Shiloli he was much exposed, but escaped 
in that terrible conflict without a scar, although the exposure 
and fatigue brought on sickness a few days afterwards, in con- 
sequence of which he remained an invalid for a short time in 
camp. His anxiety, however, for active duty induced him to 
return to his post before he had sufficiently recovered, and that 
imprudence brought on a typhoid fever, to Avhich he succumbed. 
He was sent to the Hospital at Evansville, Ind., where he died 
on the 11th of May, 1862. 

Lieut. Bcals was an amiable and unassuming young man, 
courteous to all, obedient to his superior officers, and kind to 
the men under him : full of patriotic zeal, he gave his aflFections 
to his country when danger first hovered around her. On 
entering the service, he Avas asked by a friend whether he 
had counted the cost and danger. "Yes," said he, "if I had 
a thousand lives, they should all be hazarded in defence of my 
country." 

That Lieut. Beals was a ffood soldier, is known from the 
testimony of his superior officer, Capt. W. H. Manning, in a 
letter to the writer of this, who says : 

" Whilst writing on tliis subject, I would wish to state, that I consider his 
loss as one that cannot soon be supplied. As a companion, he was always 
cheerful, and disposed to look on the bright side of everything — as an oflScer, 
he was prompt and efficient in every duty — on the battle-field, he was brave 
almost to recklessness, and on the dreadful day of Shiioh, he won the admira- 
tion of every officer and man in the regiment. Ever since he left, especially 
since I heard of his death, I have felt as one bereft indeed. May he rest in 
peace, and may a sympathizing Saviour comfort his sorrowing and afflicted 
friends." 

P. Beals, brother of the youthful Lieutenant, went to Evans- 
ville and brought his body home for burial. His funeral took 
place on a pleasant Sabbath afternoon, when a large concourse 
of friends and citizens convened in the Congregational Church 
at Beardstown, to manifest their love and respect for the de- 
ceased. An eloquent sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr. 
Twining. The brave, the noble, the kind and affectionate 
young Lieutenant was then laid in his grave by the side of his 
kinsmen, there to sleep and wake not until the morning of the 
resurrection. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 55 



LIEUTENANT MEACHAM. 

Lieut. Henry Goodrich Meacham, son of Dr. Silas and 
Rebecca Meacham, was born in the town of Maine, Cook co., 
Illinois, on the 18th of January, 1841. Bereft of his father at 
an early age, under the judicious guidance of his mother, he 
developed such rare mental and moral qualities as ripened sub- 
sequently into a noble manhood. In his fifteenth year, he left 
home for Evanston, Illinois, to prepare for a collegiate course, 
where, after studying two years, he was admitted to the North- 
western University in September, 1858, and graduated in the 
class of 1862. 

In the year 1861, at the breaking out of the Rebellion, when 
many of his companions and classmates had responded to their 
country's call, he felt that he must go. His mind was much 
exercised upon the subject, but after mature deliberation and 
advice of friends, he thought it best to complete his course of 
study. His strong patriotism, however, did not permit him long 
to enjoy the comforts of home and the society of friends, to 
which he was ever most strongly attached. A few weeks only, 
after receiving his diploma, came the President's second call 
for volunteers, and, renouncing all his long-cherished plans of 
scientific and professional study, young Meacham, unprompted 
by any one, and purely from a sense of duty, enlisted as a 
private in the 88th Regiment Illinois Volunteers, on the 25th 
of July, 1862. A few months afterwards, he was promoted to 
a Lieutenancy. In this, as in all other positions, he was ever 
faithful, commanding the respect and esteem of his brother 
soldiers and superior officers. 

After sharing in hardships, toilsome marches, and dangers of 
battle at Perrysville and Stone River, and the subsequent duties 
of camp life, his constitution, not naturally robust, gave way, 
when he was for a time off duty. During his convalescence, his 
regiment was ordered out on a forced march to meet the enemy. 
Still feeble and utterly unfit for duty, he insisted on joinin^his 



OG MARTYRS AND IIKKOKS OF ILLINOIS. 

company, that tlievo might be no hick of service on his part 
Avhen there was Avork to do for his country. After a march of 
some hours, lie sank to tlie ground from utter exhaustion, and 
-was borne back to the hospital at IMurfreesboro, Tenn., where, 
after an ilhiess of one month, he died on the 1st of April, 18l)o. 

" He. the yoini|; and bravo, who oherieheJ 
Noble longings for tlie strife, 
By the wayside fell and perished. 
Weary with the march of life.'" 

Ilis brother, 11. AV. Meacham, who was with him during the 
last days of his sickness, immediately brought his remains to his 
home in Briekton, lib, wlierc his funeral and interment took 
place, April 9th, on which occasion a discourse was delivered 
by the Rev. Dr. Bannister, under whose instructions young 
Meaeham came during his senior year in college. 

Ilis character possessed many traits which would mark him 
as a model young man. His residence in the University Avas 
cliaracterized by an imvarying course of exemplary, good con- 
duct, lu his appropriate work he was diligent, critical and 
thorough — prompt in meeting every retiuirement, and perform- 
ing his allotted labor, not esteeming it drudgery, as many do, 
but from the high motives which dignify the nobler class of 
minds. Possessing rare natural endowments, both mental and 
moral, he had stained such chastcness and breadth of culture as 
few at his age attain untt>. He exhibited a Christian deport- 
ment for years, and vniited himself to the Congregational Church 
at Elk Grove on the eve of his departure for the field. Ilis 
sincerity of purpose, the transparency of his character and 
motives, his manly bearing, his kind and genial spirit, his pure- 
mindedness, and his patient and painstaking devotion to his 
work, cause his memory to linger with us in fragrance ami 
beauty. 




M A J U R M E D I L L. 



MAllTYllS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 57 



MAJOR MEDILL. 

Major William H. Medill, of the 8th Illmois Cavalry, 
mortally wounded in pursuing the rebels after the battle of 
Gettysburg, was born in Massillon, Ohio, on the 5th of Novem- 
ber, 1835. In the spring of 1838, the family removed to a 
farm in Pike township. Stark county, Ohio, where he remained 
on his father's farm until ho was fifteen years old, when, in 
1850, he went to Coshoction, Ohio, and commenced learning 
the printing business in the office of the Coshoction Repiihlican. 
In April, 1852, he removed to Cleveland, Ohio, where he took 
a situation as a compositor on his brother Joseph's paper, the 
Forest City — afterwards called the Leader. At the end of six 
months, he took the foremanship of the Leader, which situation 
he held until the fall of 1855, when he removed to Chicago, 
where he joined his brother James in publishing the Prairie 
Farmer. In the fall of 1858, he disposed of his interest in the 
Prairie Farmer, and went to Canton, Ohio, where he established 
the Stark County Republican. He worked hard and faithfully 
to get his new paper on a paying footing ; but his means were 
limited ; the receipts at first were small, and the cash outlay 
considerable ; the promises made to him at the outset, by poli- 
ticians, were not fulfilled, and after six months' elfort, not 
realizing the success he anticipated, he sold the paper and 
returned to Chicago. During the short period he owned the 
Republican, it was a pungent and attractive sheet, handsomely 
printed, and filled with interesting matter. In politics, like its 
proprietor, it was radical Republican. 

On his return to Chicago he obtained a situation as a com- 
positor on the Paily Tribune, of which his brother Joseph was 
part owner and editor, and worked at the case from the spring 
of 1859 until the breaking out of the Slaveholders' Great Rebel- 
lion in the spring of 1861. During this period he spent his 
leisure hours in storing his mind with useful information. He 
4 



av'^ MAUTYUS ANn UKUOKS 01- ILLINOIS. 

read history, voviowod liis olomontarv studios, and >vhon tlto 
Avar broko out. was spondini:; Ins ovoniugs in tho Oon\n\oroial 
College of Hvyant vV: Stratton. and in tho Ivoouni o\' tho "Yoiu^ii- 
^[ol^s Literary Union," of wlvioli ho wa.s a zealous and }>opiilar 
member. During his boyhood years his edueation Itad boon 
negleeted, and now when he was arrived at maahooil. ho |hm- 
coived the imperative neeessity of making up for lost time and 
preparing himself for future usefulness, lie desired to be an 
editor of a sueeessful daily paper, and with this objeet in view, 
was industriously titting himsolf for the re.<ponsibilities o( 
that ealling when tlte news was th\shed to Ohieago on the night 
of the l-lth of April, IStU, that the rebels of South Carolina 
had fired on the United States' fort, Sun\ter. and had bombarded 
it*t heroie handful of defenders into surrender. He deelared. 
on the instant of the arrival of the sad it\telligenee. that he 
would volunteer on the first e^iU for men to help revenge the 
insult to the Natiom\l fiag and to erusli the parrioides that havl 
lit\ed their daggers against the life of tlie Great Kepublie. Ho 
had watehed and studied the gathering storm of rebellion for 
months, and had eome deliberately to the eonclusion that there 
was but one way to deal Avith the insurgents, and that was to 
grapple them aiul erush them by military powor. He eontonded 
that there was no other possible euro for the disease, save sabre, 
grape and bayonets. 

The noAvs of the eapture of Fort Simiter Avas published in 
Chicago on tlie 15th of April. A meeting of young men of the 
Literary Union was ealled to assemble at Bryant ..t Stratton's 
Commereial Rooms on the evening of the 17th. Several brief 
speeeheji Avere made; one of them by Major Medill, in Avhieh lie 
set forth tlie cause of tlie Rebellion and its euro, and pledged 
himself to join the first military eompany that might be raised, 
as a private soldier, in obedienee to the promptings of patriotie 
duty. A muster roll Avas presented. Avhen sixty young men — 
himself ineluded — put doAvn their names. On the next day he 
joined tlie Barker Hragoons, and soon after found himself doing 
picket and other duty at Camp Defiance, Cairo, where the 
company remained for six Aveeks. On the 1st of June. Gen. 
"MeOlellan. tb.en reeently appointed to command, visited Cairo 



MARTYRS AND HER0P:3 OF ILLIXOI.^. 



to inspect the troops and fortifications. He was so much pleased 
with Barker's Chicago Dragoons, that he immediately adopted 
them as his body guards, and ordered them to join him at 
Clarksburg, Va., which they did the week after. For the next 
two months, the Chicago Dragoons were actively engaged in 
contents with the rebels. First there was a brisk skirmish at 
Philippi ; next a fight at Buckhannon ; then came a hard fight 
at Ricli Mountain, July 8th. On the 11th was the battle near 
Beverly, in which the rebels were routed, losing 200 killed and 
wounded, and leaving 300 prisoners, several pieces of artillery 
and all their baggage in the hands of the Federal troops. In 
this battle the Chicago Dragoons dismounted and fought as 
sharpshooters, doing considerable execution with their revolving 
carbines. Private Medill distinguished himself for dash and 
daring. When the order to charge was given, he was among 
the foremost of his company to open the attack on the enemy. 
The fighting was done Indian fashion — every trooper took 
shelter behind a tree or log, and dodged forward from one to 
the other. In this encounter Private Medill became enlaced 
with a Georgian lieutenant. Each was behind a small tree 
about sixty yards apart. The rebel fired first, but missed his 
aim. Medill raised his carbine and fired, but hit the sapling 
behind which the rebel stood partly concealed ; he then sprang 
forward, calling on the rebel to surrender or he would let day- 
light through him. The ofiicer threw down his gun and 
handed his sword to his captor, who marched him to the rear, 
feeling proud of the achievement. The sword he brought home 
as a trophy, and it is now in possession of his brother Joseph. 
After the battle of Beverly, the Chicago Dragoons joined the 
pursuit, and helped to give the finishing blow to the enemy at 
Carrick's Ford, where the rebel Gen. Garnett was killed and 
1200 prisoners taken. The remnants of the enemy's force fled 
over the Greenbriar Mountains, vigorously pursued for consider- 
able distance by our troops. The last seen of them they were 
double-quicking it towards Staunton. In a letter, dated Beverly, 
July IGth, he complains that the army had ceased its pursuit. 

We are 12,500 strong, (he writes,) with five batteries of flying artillery. 
Tiie rebs. are utterly demoralized. McClellan ought to pursue them to Staun- 



GO MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

ton, aud then make a forced march on Richmond, which we could easily cap- 
ture and hold by the aid of the fleet. It would take us but a week. The 
country is full of provisions, and most of the way, the road is good and easy 
to travel. Now is the time to strike vigorously at the secessionists. If I 
commanded this army, the pursuit would certainly be made. I like our Gen- 
eral, but I think he is too cautious ; he lacks boldness and enterprise. 

Though but a private soldier and little skilled in military 
tactics, he exhibited foresight and daring — essential qualities 
for an officer, and Avith the history of the campaigns in Eastern 
Virginia before the reader, few will deny but that his sugges- 
tions were feasible. 

On the 10th of August, the Chicago Dragoons, having served 
a month over their time, returned home and were mustered out 
of service. After a fortnight's rest and recreation, he resolved 
to re-enter the service of his country for three years or during 
the war ; not that he liked military life, but from the promptings 
of patriotic duty. On the 24th of August, 1861, he applied to 
Gen. Farnsworth for permission to recruit a company for the 
afterwards famous 8th Illinois Cavalry, which, on the 26th, was 
granted, on condition that the company be raised in two weeks. 
The State at the time was covered with recruiting officers, and 
competition for men was sharp ; but taking hold with his accus- 
tomed vigor, before the fortnight had elapsed, he had his com- 
pany filled and sworn into the service for three years. He was 
unanimously elected Captain, and when the field officers came 
to be selected, a majorship was easily within his reach, but he 
declined it on the ground that he would rather be in direct 
command of the men who had joined his company out of friend- 
ship to himself, than to hold a higher and easier command where 
he would be in a measure separated from them. This feeling 
of mutual friendship continued until the day of his death, and 
when the news was made known in the company that their old 
captain was no more, there were few of those bronzed warriors 
that did not weep bitter tears of regret, or make nsAV vows of 
veno-cance on the rebels who had deprived them of their beloved 
companion in arms. This feeling of strong attachment grew out 
of no licence he gave them, for he was a strict disciplinarian, 
and insisted upon a full compliance with military rules and 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 61 

orders. But lie won their confidence and love by watching over 
their personal comfort, showing them kindness when sick, pre- 
serving their health, defending them against aggressions, and 
in the hour of battle setting an example of coolness and bravery, 
but never recklessly rushing them into danger and destruction. 
By these means he always had the largest, best drilled and 
most efficient company in the regiment. In acknowledgment 
of their confidence and esteem, his company presented him on 
New Year's, 1862, with a handsome sword and a brace of Colt's 
revolvers. 

Refusing to be major at the outset, Gren. Farnsworth made 
him ranking captain, and it happened that for several months 
of the summer and fall of 1861 he was in command of the regi- 
ment, when he performed the duties of colonel to the satisfaction 
of his superiors, and established his ability to command. 

In October, 1861, " Farnsworth's Big Abortion Regiment," 
as the 8th Illinois Cavalry Avas called by the Potomac army, 
marched passed the White House, 1164 strong, in review by 
the President. It was composed of unconditional Unionists, 
who equally hated slavery and rebellion ; a better or harder 
fighting regiment has not gone to the Avar, nor has any per- 
formed more service or inflicted greater damage on the enemy. 

The fall of 1861 was spent near Washington, drilling, and 
the Avinter in Alexandria, as part of the garrison, where the 
regiment was constantly in a quarrel Avith the military governor, 
Gen. Montgomery, a rebel sympathizer, who took sides with 
the secesh inhabitants, removed the American flag from houses 
owned by rebels, and drove ofi" editors of outspoken Union 
neAA^spapers, and spent his leisure hours in denouncing the 
Abolitionists as being the cause of the Avar. With such a man 
the 8tli Illinois could not harmonize. Montgomery succeeded 
in getting the regiment removed from their comfortable quarters 
and sent to camp on a low, wet piece of ground some distance 
beyond Alexandria, Avliere 240 men Avere soon doAA'n Avith fever 
from the effect of exposure to rain, snoAv and knee-deep mud. 
Thirty-five brave boys died, and Captain Medill, in his letters 
home, bitterly laments the loss of four of his company — victims 
of the proslavery malice of Montgomery. 



62 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 

The spring campaign opened early in March, by the sudden 
and unexpected evacuation of the feared and famous Manassas. 
An extract from a letter written by the Major, April 19, 1862, 
may prove interesting : 

* * Well, we have actually taken Manassas without firing a shot. 
Astonishing is it not ? For nine months it has stood as a menace and as a 
stumbling block in the pathway of the army. It was looked ujiou by many 
as an earthquake standing ready to swallow up all who might venture too 
near its yawning mouth. We have been assured by spies, by deserters, by 
Richmond and New York newspapers, that the country all about Manassas 
was naturally as impregnable as Gibraltar — that it had been converted into 
one tremendous fortification ; the hill-sides being honey-combed with rifle-iMts 
and covered with masked batteries. On March 10th, we started for the famous 
stronghold. I will not relate the feelings and talk of the soldiers, except that 
each considered himself a martyr about to be sacrificed for the sake of his 
country. 

The first day's march brought our regiment within eight miles of the world- 
renowned stronghold;: to-morrow, the great battle would begin! The evening 
was spent cracking jokes. One said, our march reminded him of the fable in 
^sop, of the tracks that all led into the sick lion's den — none leading out, and 
that he expected no tracks of this army would ever lead towards Alexandria. 
Next morning "boots and saddles" sounded, and forward we started, spread 
out like a fan as skirmishers, every minute expecting to run against a masked 
battery, or be blown up by a hidden torpedo or mine. At nine, a halt was 
ordered. My Lieut, Hynes, who is acting Provost Marshal on Gen. Sumner's 
staff, galloped up to our regiment and cried out, Manassas was evacuated two 
days ago, and the rebel army has skedaddled across the Rappahannock! In- 
credulity was on every man's face, but the messenger declared it was true, and 
that Gen. McClellan was then occupying Beauregard's headquarters; that the 
rebels had run off in a panic, that their works of defence were all shams, that 
Gen. Sumner said that they had not numbered 60,000 men. That we all felt 
sheepish you may well imagine. Here was an army of almost a quarter of a 
million held at bay by this handful. For the first time, we began to lose con- 
fidence in our commander. All that Lieut. Hynes told us proved true. When 
we came upon the rebel lines, there was nothing to be seen but an open country, 
dotted over with little, trifling earthworks. The ditches and breastworks were 
poor apologies. I leaped my horse over all the obstructions met, with ease. 

On the top of a point of ground, where we first came upon the plains of 
Manassas, was an earthwork, on which the rebels had planted a number of 
wooden guns. By the way, I observe that some of the New York and Phil- 
adelphia papers deny that any wooden cannon were mounted in any of the 
forts, but I know better. There were a dozen or more in this one fort, as 
nearly every officer of my regiment can testify, for we handled them. 

All the stories you have read about the wonderful strength of Manassas 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 63 

are bosh. I have seen several battle-fields, but never beheld a piece of country 
in Virginia so favorable for a fair, stand-up, give-and-take tight. The strongest 
protection the rebels had was the natural banks of Bull Run, a small stream a 
few yards in width. We could have flanked them on either wing, and crushed 
them like an egg-shell. Manassas will go down in history as the biggest hum- 
bug on record. Any time during the past four months it might have been 
taken, if our leaders had been as willing to show the way as the soldiers were 
of following. 

We have given this long extract from Major Medill's private 
correspondence, because it rehxtes to one of the most important 
events of the war, described by a close and honest observer. 

The 8th Illinois and other cavalry Avere ordered to pursue the 
retreating rebels to the Rappahannock. The lUinois troopers 
had the advance, and Major Medill (then senior captain) com- 
manded the leading squadron. At Bealton's Station he came 
upon a battalion of rebel cavalry, drawn up on a hill-side to 
receive him. The Major promptly brought his front into line, 
and ordered his squadron to charge. Away they dashed on a 
gallop, and when within 100 yards, delivered a well directed 
fire from their carbines. The rebels broke and fled, and then 
commenced an exciting horse race for several miles. The rebels 
scattered, and the Major ordered his men to disperse as skir- 
mishers, after them. The pursuit was continued to the Rappa- 
hannock, vfhere most of the rebels escaped across a bridge, 
which they burned as soon as over. The rebel loss was two 
killed, twenty wounded, and twelve taken prisoners. After this 
gallant little affair, the Illinois cavalry returned to Alexandria 
and embarked for Fortress Monroe. Nothing of interest trans- 
pired after debarking until the battle of Williamsburg, May 5. 
From the dense forests that enveloped the battle-field, the cavalry 
could take no part in the action. After the rebels were de- 
feated, however, the 8th Illinois vigorously pursued the foe in 
his retreat — the Major's squadron leading. About a thousand 
prisoners were captured, mainly by the Illinois cavalry. The 
army of Gen. McClellan moved slowly forward towards Rich- 
mond. On the 18th of May, Major Medill Avas sent out with 
his battalion on a reconnoisance towards the Chickahominy 
Creek. He got within 12 miles of Richmond, and had a sharp 
skirmish with some rebel infantry and cavalry. He captured a 



64 MAETYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

few prisoners and a negro returning to his home from Rich- 
mond, who had neAvspapers of that morning and letters written 
but a few hours before in Richmond : they described a great 
panic existing in the rebel capital ; the enemy expected that 
McClellan would march immediately on the city ; their army 
was demoralized ; the defenses were defective ; the terrified 
officials were removing the public archives, and no doubt was 
expressed or entertained but the Federal army could march in 
and take the place. This information was promptly placed in 
the hands of Gen. McClellan ; but the golden moment was not 
improved. The battle of Fair Oaks was fought and won, but 
not followed up. The right wing of the army, under Gen. 
Porter, took position at Gaines Mill, and went to fortifying ; the 
Illinois cavalry was pushed forward to Mechanicsville, and per- 
formed picket duty along the Chickahominy, as far north as 
Hanover Com-t House, On two or three occasions the Major 
pushed his reconnoisances within sight of Richmond, He com- 
plains very bitterly in a letter, dated June 17th, of the gross 
negligence of the regular cavalry under Col, P. St.-G. Cook, 
for allowing his brother-in-lavf, Gen. J. E. B. Stewart, to pass 
through his pickets and lines to the rear of the army, capturing, 
destroying and burning as he went, and escaping unmolested. 
Cook exhibited no vigilance or energy, but was never court- 
martialed, because he was an aristocrat and a regular. He did 
not start in pursuit for several hours, then took a wrong road, 
and marched slowly. He says if his regiment had been put in 
pursuit of Stewart, they would have given a lively chase, and 
that he never would have had twelve hours' time to build bridges 
across the Chickahominy on which to escape. In a letter, dated 
June 25tli, he says : 

Before this reaches you, the long gathering storm-cloud will break. We 
have wasted a month here in inaction. Our army is doing two things: ditch 
digging and dying; the sickness and mortality this hot weather in those marshes 
are terrible. While our army is wasting away, the enemy is rapidly growing 
stronger by means of a sweeping conscription. We are 40,000 fewer for duty 
than we were a month ago, and the rebels are 50,000 stronger than they were a 
few weeks since. I have just heard that Stonewall Jackson, with 30,000 men, 
has arrived from the Shenandoah Valley, and taken position on our right, near 
Hanover Court House. If this be so, a battle may take place at any hour. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 65 

I am disgusted at the way this fine army is employed. One part is ditch 
digging, and another stands guard over the pUiutations and property of slave- 
holders, whose sons are in Lee's army, fighting us. Our generals will never 
put down this Slaveholders' Rebellion by pursuing a proslavery policy. The 
chief support of the rebellion is derived from the labor of four millions of 
slaves, who supply the Commissary and Quartermaster's Departments of the 
enemy, and support the families of the rebel soldiers besides. We must knock 
away this great pillar of their edifice, else we shall never succeed in putting 
down the revolt. I am not sanguine of the result of the impending battle; 
our boys will make a stubborn fight, but McCIellan has waited too long. He 
has neglected his opportunity. Mark my words. 

The next day, sure enougli, the first of the bloody scenes of 
seven days' battle began at Mechanicsville ; the day after, 
Gaines Mill was fouglit and lost, after a long and terrible con- 
test, in consequence of the neglect of the General-in-Chief to 
reinforce the right wing of his army, which Avas obliged, for 
twelve hours, to resist the whole rebel army. The 8th Cavalry, 
in this battle, did all that was in their power in rallying and 
returning stragglers to the front, charging on the enemy's 
flanks, and finally helping to cover the retreat. The Major 
distinguished himself for coolness and bravery in this as well as 
in the subsequent operations, until the army found itself at 
Harrison's Landing, July 2d, 1862. 

From that time until September, when the 8th Illinois Cavalry 
found itself engaged with the enemy in Maryland, there is little 
personal history to relate. He was much depressed in spirits 
at the result of the seven days' battles, and fearful of foreign 
recognition of Confederate independence. He continues, in his 
letters, to deplore the proslavery spirit and influences that pre- 
vailed at the headquarters of the army. 

When the army withdrew from the Peninsula, the Major's 
regiment formed the extreme rearguard — and himself had 
command of the rearmost squadrons. Not a few slaves found 
asylum in that regiment as it fell back to Yorktown, and hosts 
of them owe their deliverance to the Major and his radical 
troopers, who never let slip a chance to relieve the rebel F. F. 
V.'s of this very "peculiar" kind of property. 

Owing to the sickness of the senior officers, the Major was 
the ranking officer, and took command of the regiment on its 



66 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

arrival at YorktoAvn, and continued in command during all of 
tlie subsequent campaign, in which he greatly distinguished 
himself, frequently receiving the thanks of Gen. Pleasanton, 
the chief of cavalry. 

The 8th Illinois Cavalry reached Alexandria, Sept. 4, 1862, 
but they had scarcely landed before they were ordered to 
Washington, and thence marched direct to Rockville, Md. 
Lee's army had crossed the Potomac after defeating Pope's 
troops, and occupied Frederick City. The old army of Mc- 
Clellan's was hastily reorganized and united with the bulk of 
Pope's and Burnside's corps and other troops, and marched at 
once to prevent Lee from seizing Baltimore. The Major's 
regiment led the vanguard of this movement, and on the 9tli of 
September became engaged with J. E. B. Stewart's rebel cavalry 
at Damascus and Tenallytown, beating them in each encounter. 
Next day a sharp fight took place at New Market, in which the 
rebel cavalry were severely handled. Soon after, the gallant 
affair at Boonsboro occurred. The place was held by two regi- 
ments of Stewart's cavalry. The Major made a hasty recon- 
noisance, and concluded he could win. He formed his men, 
and placing himself at their head, ordered a charge. Away 
they dashed on a full gallop right into the place, where a hard 
hand to hand conflict ensued ; revolver, sword and pistol were 
freely used on both sides, but the impetuosity and pluck of the 
Illinois troopers carried the day, and the discomfited rebels 
beat a hasty retreat, leaving nearly 200 killed, Avounded and 
prisoners in the hands of the victors, besides all their baggage. 
The 8th Illinois lost less than forty men in the engagement. 
In following up the flying foe, a hard fight took place a few 
miles beyond Boonsboro, at Middleton, in which infantry and 
artillery were brought up by both sides. The enemy was de- 
feated, and retreated to South Mountain, where a very desperate 
contest ensued, ending in the defeat of the rebels, in which the 
Major's regiment took a conspicuous part. The rebels fell back 
behind Antietam Creek. This was Sept. 15th. On the 17th 
took place the hard fought battle of Antietam, resulting in the 
defeat of the rebels. The 8tli Illinois, under Major Medill, and 
the brigade under Gen. Farnsworth, were employed to support 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 67 

an artillerj attack on the centre of the rebel position, in order 
to relieve Gen. Burnside from a cross-fire that was consuming; 
his men. Those relieving batteries were pushed far forward, 
and completely silenced the troublesome guns of the enemy. 
The Major often afterwards said, that if Gen. McClellan had 
sent forward half of his reserves, under Porter, that lay idle 
all day, the rebel right wing could easily have been crushed, as 
it might have been assailed in front and flank at the same 
moment. McClellan was duly notified of the important heights 
gained by the artillery and cavalry, but he neglected to improve 
the tempting opportunity. After the rebels retreated, the Ma- 
jor's regiment, as usual, was in the advance of the pursuit, and 
picked up a large number of prisoners. 

On the 2d of October, the 8th Illinois had an encounter with 
the rebels, in which the Major exhibited superior strategic as 
well as fighting qualities. His brigade made a reconnoisance 
to Martinsbm-g, Va., into which they dashed and captured a 
lot of rebels, rescued some Union prisoners, and got a quantity 
of plunder. There was a large rebel cavalry force under Gen. 
Fitzhugh Lee, not far off, that entered the place just as the 
Federal cavalry was leaving it. Gen. Pleasanton placed the 
8th Illinois and a battery of flying artillery, both under Major 
Medill, as the rearguard, which the enemy "pitched into" at 
once. After a running fight for some distance, the Major left 
one gun with his rear squadron, and sent the other five pieces 
forward to a high spot of ground, and had them masked and 
trained to SAveep the road. Meanwhile the rearguard and its 
gun took up successive positions and skirmished vigorously. 
The rebels, seeing but one gun, pressed hard after, and tried to 
capture it b}'' a charge. When they came rushing on headlong 
to within a couple of hundred yards of the masked battery, the 
Major gave the signal for his men to clear the road, which was 
instantly done. Whereupon the -whole battery opened with 
grape, canister and shell right into their column. The result 
was, that scores of men and horses were piled together on the 
road in a common destruction. While they were in confusion, 
the Major ordered his men to ride into the fields along the road- 
side and pour a volley into their flanks — the IMajor heading the 



68 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

charge himself and emptying the contents of his revolver into 
the broken and flying enemy, Tlie rebel loss was 150 men, 
including prisoners. The 8th Illinois lost but 16 men. The 
remainder of the march back to Sharpsburg was unmolested. 
Gen. Pleasanton highly complimented the Major on the com- 
plete success of this piece of strategy, and for the able manner 
in which he handled the rearguard. It was about this time he 
was promoted to Major — having previously been senior Captain 
of his regiment. 

It was soon after the occurrence last related, that Gen. J. E. 
B. Stewart made the famous raid — measuring the circumference 
of the Potomac army. Several bodies of Federal cavalry were 
started in pursuit of the contumacious rebels, among others the 
famous 8th Illinois Cavalry, commanded by the subject of our 
sketch. The greatest diificulty was to find Stewart's track. The 
Major was started on the wrong road, and after traveling some 
twenty-five miles, finally got on the right scent ; but the rebels 
had a long start of him. AAvay went his troopers and the od 
Indiana Cavalry and their battery of artillery, on the gallop. 
Night came on, but the pursuit was kept up regardless of the 
darkness. Over hills and mountains, down into deep valleys, and 
across creeks and ravines, rode the gallant 8th Illinois and In- 
diana boys. A cold rain poured down, adding to the gloom and 
difficulty. The Major seized and pressed native guides to pilot 
the way. With these, and the light of two tin lanterns, he vig- 
orously pushed ahead. When day broke, he learned that the 
enemy was at least fifteen miles in advance, and pushing south 
in the direction of Washington. For twenty-five hours his men 
had been in the saddle, and neither they nor their horses had 
eaten a bite. Many of the latter had broken down, and other 
horses were seized to take their places. A halt for rest and re- 
freshment was ordered of a couple of hours; then "boots and 
saddles" was sounded, and off went the cavalcade again. The 
troopers pushed forward as fast as it was possible to urge on 
their poor jaded brutes. Finally the regiment reached the Mo- 
nocacy where it empties into the Potomac, just as the rearguard 
of Stewart's troopers were fording the river and making their 
escape into Virginia. A few shells were thrown after them, but 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 69 

the game had escaped ; and what made it the more provoking, 
within four miles was a strong force of infantry and cavah-y that 
knew of their coming, and could easily have stopped their cross- 
ing. The mortification of the Major and his comrades may be 
imagined, but can hardly be described. In this extraordinary 
pursuit the 8th Illinois Cavalry rode a distance of 88 miles in 
thirty-two hours, including all stops and delays. It is needless 
to say that both men and horse suffered severely. 

A few days after this event, the Major obtained a brief fur- 
lough to visit his friends in Chicago. He had not been off duty 
a day for almost fifteen months. On his arrival he was warmly 
welcomed by his friends and acquaintances. The Mercantile 
Literary Union, of which he was an active and popular member 
at the time he joined the army, gave him a generous banquet 
at the Briggs House, and congratulated him on his promotion, 
and his prospects of higher military preferment for worthy and 
gallant conduct. After enjoying the society of friends and re- 
latives for a few days, he hurried back and joined his regiment. 

When the army of the Potomac crossed the river and marched 
to Fredericksburg, the 8th Illinois Cavalry was in the advance, 
skirmishing all the way there. A month afterwards, the great 
battle of Fredericksburg was fought and lost. The Major's 
regiment was an idle spectator of the terrible conflict, and could 
take no part in the fray. The regiment spent the winter doing 
picket and scouting duty in the peninsula between the Potomac 
and Rappahannock rivers, where they made themselves a terror 
to the smugglers and rebel conscript agents. When the 1st of 
January came, the President's proclamation of freedom to the 
slaves of rebels went into effect. The Major celebrated that 
day by taking a battalion of his cavalry, visiting all the planta- 
tions for many miles around, and liberating and bringing into 
camp nearly one thousand "contrabands." The rest of the 
regiment were not idle, but scouted about the country on similar 
business. Before nightfall. King George county, where slavery 
had reigned for 200 years, was free soil ! 

LThe Major entered into no service with more alacrity and 
hearty zest than in giving freedom to the loyal bondsmen of 
rebels. He did it from motives of humanity for the poor slave. 



70 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

and for the purpose of weakening the enemy. He contended 
that from the labor of the slaves the rebels derived their chief 
strength, and that military policy, to say nothing of humanity, 
required that they should be deprived of that great support. 

Early in the month of May, the 8th Cavalry was divided into 
three battalions — one under Major Medill, and another under 
Major Beveridge, and the third under Major Clendenin, and 
sent down the peninsula between the Potomac and Rappahannock 
on a scout to break up smuggling, capture guerillas, and drive 
out the rebel conscript agents. They were gone ten days, 
during which time they seized an incredible quantity of smug- 
glers' goods, burnt 100 boats of every size, from a schooner down 
to a dug-out, made a hundred prisoners of guerillas, captured a 
number of the " conscriptors," and swept Westmoreland, Rich- 
mond, Lancaster and Northumberland of able-bodied, adult 
slaves. When the regiment returned, it brought back a singu- 
lar train, consisting of scores of wagon loads of contraband 
goods, droves of cattle, horses and mules, a hundred cut-throat 
looking prisoners, and over 1500 shouting, singing and praying 
nesroes — some mounted on mules, others on their masters' 
wagons, and part on foot. As the cavalcade filed through the 
lines of the army, it was greeted on all sides with loud laughter 
and louder cheers, at the "grand haul" the Illinois troopers 
had made from the secesh. Hundreds of the contrabands be- 
came soldiers in the Union army, and are proving their right 
to be free by loyal devotion to the stars and stripes. 

The battle of Chancellorsville was fought May 2-3. An 
important part of Gen. Hooker's plan embraced a great cavalry 
raid on the rear of the rebel army to destroy their trains, rail- 
ways and bridges, burn up their army stores, and then sweep 
down to Richmond and capture it if found to be slightly de- 
fended. The plan was Avell laid, but badly executed. The 
cavalry was divided into two divisions of 4000 men each, and 
two batteries of flying artillery to each : one was commanded 
by Gen. Stoneman, with whom Avent the 12th Ilhnois, under 
Col. Davis ; the other division was commanded by Gen. Averill, 
vrith whom went the 8th Illinois, under Col. Gamble. The 
plan was, for the two divisions to cross the Rappahannock some 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OE ILLINOIS. 71 

distance apart, and form a junction at Gordonsville, and thence 
sweep forward towards Richmond on their grand raid. Mean- 
while Gen. Hooker woukl strike Lee's forces with the main 
body of his army. Stoneman crossed the Rappahannock, and 
pushed boklly for Gordonsville. Averill also crossed, and 
marched timidly forward until he reached a ford on the Rapi- 
dan, which was disputed by a couple of rebel regiments with 
two guns, and there he remained a day and a half, afraid to 
force his passage across, and then marched back, having ac- 
complished nothing. He remained idle all of the third day 
within three miles of the left flank of Stonewall Jackson's corps 
while it was whipping and driving Howard's 11th corps. There 
that splendid cavalry force lay supine, listening to the roar of 
the great battle going on w^ithin three miles, when, if it had 
pitched into the rebel flank, there is no doubt but that it would 
have changed the fate of the day, and converted a bad defeat 
into a great victory, for such an attack would have been wholly 
unexpected by the rebels. 

Stoneman ascribed the partial failure of his expedition to 
Averill's bad conduct, and Hooker deprived him of his com- 
mand. Instead of being dismissed the service, he was sent to 
Western Virginia and given another command ! In speaking of 
the disgraceful and supine part he and his brave regiment were 
made to play in the battle of Chancellorsville and the raid on 
Richmond, the Major always expressed regret and mortification. 

Shortly after this time he had a severe attack of bilious fever, 
aggravated by diarrhoea ; but a sound constitution and temper- 
_ate habits, and his great anxiety to rejoin his regiment, carried 
him safely through. Lee's army had commenced its famous 
march on Pennsylvania, and Hooker's cavalry were constantly 
engaged with the rebel cavalry and picket forces, for the pur- 
pose of discovering the enemy's intentions. A hard cavalry 
fight took place, June 9, near Warrenton Junction, in which 
Captain Smith and Major Clark were mortally, and Major 
Forsyth severely, wounded — all ofiicers of the 8th Illinois. 
When Major Medill heard of the fight, he got up, sick as he 
was, ordered his horse, and started to join his regiment. The 
excitement and anxiety to take part in the actions caused his 



72 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

system to throw off the fever, and enabled him to do duty in a 
few days. He writes, June 10 : 

My sickness has not troubled me half so much as to be left behind my 
regiment when there is warrior's work to be done. I cannot submit to this 
fever, and shall mount my horse and join my regiment if it takes two men to 
hold me on. 

Shortly after, he joined the regiment and took part in the 
desperate cavalry contest at Aldie and Upperville, in which he 
greatly distinguished himself. On that occasion, the cavalry 
division of Gen. Buford encountered the rebel cavalry under 
Gen. Stewart. Col. Gamble's brigade, of which the 8th Illinois 
was the advance, charged on the rebel force drawn up in front 
of the Aldie Gap of the Blue Ridge. The 3d Indiana acted as 
skirmishers, and the 12th Illinois as supports. Early in the 
fight, Lieut. Col. Clendenin, who commanded the 8th Illinois, 
had his horse slightly wounded, and retired from the field. Maj. 
Medill, being next in rank, then took command, and, until the 
battle Avas won, behaved with a bravery, a skill and a gallantry 
that won the admiration of all who witnessed his conduct. In 
charge after charge he led his men on the rebel ranks, routing 
and scattering them. His regiment defeated, successively, two 
Virginia and one North Carolina cavalry regiments. His favo- 
rite weapon, in making a charge, was the revolver. He would 
dash his men right up to the rebel squadrons, who, in the melee, 
would unhorse scores of them with their sure and deadly six- 
shooters. He considered a sabre no match for two revolvers in 
a close encounter either with cavalry or infantry. In this en- 
gagement the 8th Illinois lost but 40 men — most of them being 
wounded by sabre cuts, while they put liors du comhat over 250 
of the enemy, besides capturing 100 prisoners. In the course 
of the fight. Major Medill captured the commander of the 11th 
Virginia Cavalry, with which his regiment was engaged at the 
moment. The incident is thus related by an eye-witness : 

While the Major was rallying his men, after one of our charges, I saw, at a 
short distance over the field, a rebel horseman, with drawn sword, chasing our 
Sergeant Major, who had got mixed up with the rebels. Major Medill, who 
happened to be near, put spurs to his big bay horse, and in a few bounds was 
close to the "reb.," who raised his sword aloft and shouted "surrender!" The 






MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



Major brought his revolver to an aim, and was in the act of pulling- the trigger, 
when the fellow dropped his sword and cried out, " Don't shoot, I surrender." 
He saved his life by just a second, as more than one bullet would have lodged 
in his body the next instant. The prisoner proved to be the Colonel of the 
11th Virginia Cavalry, and big enough in a fist fight to have whipped two of 
our Major; but on the field of battle, size confers but little advantage. 

Immediately after this cavalry battle, Gen. Hooker discovered 
that the rebel army was marching along the opposite side of the 
Blue Ridge, making for Maryland. He at once put his army 
on a forced march to head them oif. The cavalry brigade, under 
Col. Gamble, consisting of the 8th and 12th Illinois, 3d Indi- 
ana, 8th New York, and a battery, led the advance, and reached 
Gettysburg on the 30th of June, and immediately charged on 
two rebel regiments occupying the place and drove them back. 
Next day, July 1, Buford's division of cavalry (including Gam- 
ble's brigade) lay in camp. July 2d, the bloody and terrific 
battle of Gettysburg began. The rebels advanced early in the 
morning to the attack. Gen. Reynolds' force — the 1st and 
11th corps — did not arrive on the ground until 9 a. m. For 
the three preceding hours, Buford's cavalry managed to hold 
the enemy in check by successive and rapid charges on their 
flanks, compelling them to halt and change line several times, 
and actually captured quite a number of prisoners, and inflicted 
on the rebels ten times the damage received. In these brilliant 
charges, the 8th Illinois was conspicuous for its audacity and 
success. Major Beveridge led the right — being the ranking 
officer, and Major Medill the left of the regiment. 

After the infantry came up, the 8th Illinois and its brigade 
were ordered to the left of the line, to prevent a flank move- 
ment on the part of the enemy. From that time until the battle 
ended, the brigade gave the rebel infantry great annoyance, 
materially retarding his advance, by making frequent, bold 
dashes at them. In this way, the 8th Illinois saved a whole 
brigade of infantry and a battery from being captured, by com- 
pelling one of the rebel surrounding lines to halt to repel the 
daring charge of the Illinois troopers, which enabled our infantry 
brigade and their battery to escape. 

After the great battle was over, and the beaten enemy com- 

5 



74 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

menced their retreat, the two Illinois cavalry regiments began 
shooting and slashing the rebel rearguard, capturing trains and 
taking prisoners, until Lee's army stood at bay at Williamsport 
and Falling Waters. In this pursuit those regiments captured 
over 2000 prisoners and 800 rebel army wagons, fighting with 
the enemy's rearguard almost at every mile of the distance. 

During this pursuit, the gallant Major pressed on the retreat- 
ing columns with all his vigor and energy, and looked forward 
with radiant hope to the moment when the further retreat of the 
rebels would be stopped by the swollen waters of the Potomac. 
He felt sanguine that Meade's victorious army would attack 
without delay the broken and demoralized graybacks, now no- 
toriously short of ammunition and provisions. He believed the 
campaign was about ending with the total destruction of the 
invading host, and that the rebellion was on the eve of receiving 
its death-w^ound. Full of this belief, he urged on his comrades 
to strike boldly at the fleeing foe, and give them no rest until 
they laid down their arms. 

On the afternoon of July 6th, the Major's regiment reached 
the vicinity of the Potomac at Williamsport, and there discovered 
the rebels engaged in building a bridge over the river to facili- 
tate their escape. The regiment and brigade charged at once 
on the enemy's pickets and drove them back, capturing a large 
train of wagons, which were set on fire. Forty or fifty prisoners 
were also taken. The enemy were found to be in considerable 
force both of cavalry and infantry ; but it was deemed highly 
important to seize the bridge. A brigade of regulars took 
position on the right, and the cavalry on the left of the road. 
Gen. Buford ordered half the 8th Illinois to dismount and go 
forward as skirmishers. At the time the order was given, 
Major Medill was attending to some duty at a little distance. 
On his return, he learned that half of his regiment had gone 
forward under Capt. Hynes. He at once remarked to Major 
Beveridge that " a field ofiicer should command the battalion. 
If you have no objections, I will go." Assent being given, he 
borrowed a carbine, mounted his horse, and spurred after his 
men. As soon as he reached them, he stepped in front of the 
centre and shouted, "Come on, boys;" and away the line swept 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 75 

through a field on a quick step. At the opposite side of the 
fiekl, behind a barn and some fences, were stationed a large 
force of rebel infantry, who opened a heavy fire on the advanc- 
ing skirmish line. When the field had been more than half 
crossed, seeing a group of rebels in plain view but a short dis- 
tance ahead, the Major called on his men near him to give the 
fellows a volley, and raising his own carbine, took aim. At 
that instant, a minie ball struck him nearly in the middle of his 
body, making a frightful hole one and a half inches long by an 
inch wide, and of unknown depth. The ball passed through 
the lower edge of the breastbone, and slanting downwards, went 
through his lung and lodged somewhere near his backbone. He 
was soon borne from the field to the woods in the rear, and 
thence on stretchers a few miles to a church, where his wound 
was examined by the surgeon of the regiment and pronounced 
mortal. He was next day conveyed to the army hospital at 
Frederick City, suffering greatly from the motion of the vehicle. 
Meanwhile, the battle went on until nightfall, neither party 
gaining much ground, when our men fell back. 

Capt. Waite, in a letter to his father, thus writes respecting 
the Major's fall : 

Major Medill went to the frout aud took charge of the three squadrons of 
dismounted men fighting as skirmishers. They moved forward at a quick step, 
and with a "hip," "hip," in the very best of spirits. In a few minutes the sad 
news came back to us that our noble Major was mortally wounded, and soon 
after several soldiers came slowly along, bearing in their arms the gallant officer. 
A ball had entered his breast, and we believed hira past recovery. I cannot 
describe the sadness and gloom which this misfortune cast over the entire 
regiment and brigade. Officers and men all felt that we had met with a severe 
loss. The Major had been with us through many a hard fight. His conduct 
at the late desperate cavalry battle near Aldie, had particularly won for him 
the confidence and esteem of all the officers and men present. The gallantry, 
bravery and coolness displayed by the Major on that occasion were very highly 
spoken of by all. His genial, kind-hearted and generous nature had made him 
a favorite with the officers of the regiment; while his integrity of character and 
strict discipline as an officer, had won our confidence and respect. There is 
not a man in the regiment but mourns his fall. 

As soon as he reached the hospital, his friends in Chicago 
were notified by telegraph of his wound. His eldest brother — 



lO MARTYRS ANP HEROES OF lLLi:S01S. 

editor of tho Tribune, h;i<Tonod to his siilo. and vomaiuod w'nh 
liim till death came. For the third and fourth days after 
receiving the wound he seemed a little better: the pain had 
subsided, and he began to feel some hope of ultimate recovery, 
lie convei'sed freely on all topics ; made his -will with com- 
posure, giving a number of keepsakes to his friends, but be- 
queathing to his mother the most of his property. On the sixth 
day, pain and inflammation increasing, he abandoned hope o{' 
recovery: but from then until the hour of his death, he exhibited 
wonderful calmness and fortitude. The same fearless heroism, 
that had carried him triumphantly through many a fearful con- 
test with his country's foes, stood by him when brought to face 
the king of terrors, nnaided by the cKcitements of the battle- 
field and the support of robust healtli. 

His fine physical constitution succumbed but slowly to the 
destroyer, and enabled him to survive ten days with a wound 
that would have proved fatal to most men in twenty-four hours. 
His mind at times was flighty, chiefly from the effects of the 
opiates administered. Still, he retained his consciousness tmtil 
within fifteen minutes of his last breath. He expired, without 
pain or struggle, at 10 o'clock, July lo, 18G3, sm-rounded by a 
large nimiber of his beloved companions in arms, who wept over 
their dying comrade as bitter tears as if he had been their 
nearest of kin. 

While the Major lay in the hospital at Frederick, he would 
constantly inquire whether Meade had yet ordered an attack 
on Lee's beaten troops. His mind was in a state of feverish 
anxiety for the a^isault to begin, lest the enemy would escape 
across the river. Lee's army, he said, was wholly in oiu- power, 
and it only required a little daring and enterprise on the part 
of Meade to capture or kill every rebel composing it. Oh I for 
Joe Hooker, he would say ; if he commanded now, not a rebel 
would escape. 

At last, the bad news was brought to him that the rebels had 
escaped without a blow being struck at them. He was in agony 
at the information. ''I wish I had not heard it," he exclaimed. 
'• I am going to die without knowing that my country is saved 
and the slaveholders' accursed rebelHon crushed. The capture 



MAIITYIIH AND JIEROE.S OF ILLfXOfH. 



of Lee's army would have ended the war in 8ixty days ; now it 
may drag on for years. It wa.s cowardice or weak nesH that let 
the rebcla escape." He was greatly consoled, however, by the 
news that reached him of the capture of Vickshurg and Port 
Hudson, and the reported fall of Charleston. "Ah!" said he, 
"blood will tell ; it takes the WeHtern boys to handle the rebels." 

He deplored the hostility to the prosecution of the war evinced 
by "Northern Copperheads," as he called them, and declared 
that "there was more danger from a divided North than from 
both the rebellion and foreign intervention. Let the people of 
the Free States be united and stand together, and in the end 
they will triumph over all opposition, and reclaim ayitry seceded 
State to the Union." 

In giving directions concerning his body and funeral, he said 
that he desired his remains embalmed, and dressed in the full 
uniform he wore when he fell on the battle-field ; that he desired 
the Rev. Robert Collyer to preach his funeral sermon, becau.se 
he had declared that the soldier who died to save Liberty and 
Union, would himself be saved at the judgment-seat of Heaven. 
He also desired that he should be buried by the Chicago military, 
and that his remains should repose in Graceland Cemetery, be- 
cause it was under the control of Thos. B. Bryan, Esq., a true- 
hearted Union man, and a zealous and devoted friend of the 
soldier. 

His requests were all strictly carried out. His pall-bearers 
were eight officers of his own rank. His remains were escorted 
from the depot, on their arrival at Chicago, to the residence of 
Joseph Medill, Esq., by the Chicago Zouaves, where the last 
sad rites to the noble hero were performed : they were escorted 
to the cemeteiy by a battalion of the 65th Infantry, under Col. 
McChesney, and the members of the Chicago Typographical 
L'nion, of which he had been a respected associate. At the 
cemetery, six volleys were fired by the escort, and the remains 
were deposited in the receiving vault. 

Our narrative is ended. We have hastily traced the career 
of one of the martyr heroes that Illinois has given for the sal- 
vation of the L^nion, and in the long roll, no nobler, braver, or 
truer patriot has sealed his devotion to his country by his heart's 



78 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

blood. He was an ardent, thorough devotee of Liberty ; his 
whole soul was in the holy cause of Union. Every energy of 
his nature was bent to the accomplishment of the success of the 
great cause. He was as fearless as his own sword, and as cool 
in the battle as on parade ; he set an example of gallantry, 
honor and integrity that won for him the esteem and confidence 
of all his companions, without incurring the envy or jealousy of 
any. We but reiterate the unanimous voice of his beloved 
regiment, the brave, old 8th Illinois Cavalry, in ascribing to 
him great executive ability as an officer wherever he had an 
opportunity to exhibit it, and in making the sad prediction 
that, had he lived, he would have won his way to high station 
and reputation in the army. He fell in the morn of life, full 
of promise — a courteous gentleman, a whole-souled patriot, and 
a brave soldier. 




>i:.-*5^ •O^S?sS^'^-' 



l.IKl-TlONAN'r tOl.uNjn. I.OUMI! 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



79 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL LOOMIS. 

Lieut. Col. Reuben Loomis was born in the year 1826, at 
Mount Washington, Massachusetts, of a very respectable family, 
of which he was the only son. His father, David Loomis, mi- 
grated with his family to Ohio while Reuben was quite young, 
and where he grew to manhood, thoroughly trained to habits of 
industry on his father's farm. 

In the spring of 1853, he was married to Miss Mary E. Hess, 
a very estimable and worthy lady, who still survives him. 

In the year of 1856, he removed with his family to Du Quoin, 
Perry county, Illinois, and located on a farm in the vicinity of 
that flourishing town, where he resided until September, 1861, 
being universally esteemed as a good citizen and a strictly 
honest man. 

At the commencement of the rebellion he took strong ground 
in favor of sustaining the Government, and putting down dis- 
loyalty. He was fearless and outspoken in defense of his 
country's rights, and took no pains to conceal from Southern 
sympathizers, with whom he came in contact, his utter detesta- 
tion of their conduct. 

As the rebellion increased in magnitude, and the call for 
"more men" became urgent, his convictions of duty induced 
him, at considerable sacrifice, to leave his farm and remove his 
family to town, and engage in recruiting a company of cavalry, 
which he soon accomplished, and which, when organized, unani- 
mously elected him their captain. 

On the 30th day of September, 1861, Capt. Loomis started 
with his company for Camp Butler, Illinois, where they arrived 
on the 5th of October, and on the 9th were mustered into the 
United States service by Col. Pitcher, and attached to the 6th 
Illinois Cavalry Volunteers, and was lettered as Company I. 

Capt. Loomis soon afterwards returned to Du Quoin, and ob- 
tained additional recruits sufficient to fill his company, with 
whom he returned to Camp Butler on the 8th November. 



80 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

On the 19th of the same month, the regiment, under command 
of CoL Thos. H. Cavanaugh, was ordered to Shawneetown, Ilh, 
leaving Camp Butler on the 20th, arriving at Du Quoin on the 
21st, encamping there until the 25th, arriving at Shawneetown 
on the 27th, where they were encamped until Feb. 20th, 1862, 
when the 1st and 2d battalions left for Paducah, and the 3d bat- 
talion for Smithland, Kentucky. 

While at the latter place, Capt. Loomis, with his company, 
made several excursions through the surrounding country with 
marked success, gaining the credit and respect of his superior 
officers. 

On the 27th of March, the 3d battalion joined the regiment 
at Paducah, and while there Company I, under the leadership 
of its brave captain, made several trips into Tennessee of un- 
usual daring, considering the very inferior arms and equipments 
with which the men were at that time provided. 

In the month of April, Col. Cavanaugh having resigned, 
Major B. H. Grierson was promoted to the Colonelcy, and 
through the recommendation of his superior officers. Captain 
Loomis was appointed Major, and received his commission as 
such from Gov. Yates, to rank from April 25th. 

On the 8th of June the regiment moved to Columbus, Ky,, 
and on the 19th, to Memphis, Tenn., remaining at Memphis and 
vicinity until 26th November, making frequent incursions to 
Tennessee and Mississippi, with invariable success. 

On the march to Tallahatchie and northern Mississippi, the 
" Sixth" had the advance of Gen. Sherman's corps, and pro- 
tected tlie rear of Gen. Grant's army on its return from that 
expedition. 

During the winter of 1862-3, the regiment was encamped at 
Lagrange, Tenn., though kept almost constantly in motion. 

In the month of December, the Lieut. Colonel having resigned, 
Major Loomis was promoted to fill the vacancy, and Col. Grier- 
son being assigned to the command of a brigade, Lieut. Colonel 
Loomis took command of the regiment in January, 1863, in 
whicli command he remained to the day of his death. 

On the 29th of March the regiment had a very severe fight 
near Belmont, which elicited the following complimentary order : 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 81 

Headqrs. 1st Dry. 16th Army Corps, ) 
Lagrange, Teun., April 2, 1863. ^ 
General Orders — JVo. 46. 
By direction of Major Gen. S. A. ITurlbllt, Commanding- 16th Army Corps. 
The General commanding the 1st Division returns thanks to the cavahy, 
which, under the command of Lieut. Col. Loorais, of the 6th Illinois Cavalry, 
so gallantly repulsed an attack made upon them at midnight by a rebel force, 
outnumbering them threefold, near Belmont, Tenn., on the 29th of March, 
1863. By such determined fighting true glory is won, and we cannot think 
of our brave men, springing from their slumbers, aroused by a murderous vol- 
ley, and rushing upon the foe and routing him, without a thrill of pride. Well 
does our country merit such glorious service, and may all our troops largely 
render it whenever opportunity may be afforded. 

It is hereby ordered that a copy of this order be addressed to each com- 
missioned and non-commissioned officer and private who participated in the 
aifair referred to, as evidence of his bravery and good conduct. 

(By Command.) Brig. Gen.WM. Sooy Smith, 

Commanding 1st Division. 
Hoffman Atkinson, A. A. G. 

On the ITtli of April, the regiment, under command of Col. 
Loomis, started with Col. Grierson's brigade on the expedition 
known as the famous " Grierson Raid," through Mississippi, 
arriving at Baton Rouge, La., May 2d, 1863. 

They were engaged in several fights in that vicinity, and par- 
ticipated in the siege of Port Hudson, in which the skill and 
bravery of Col. Loomis was fully tested and found most worthy. 
After the fall of Port Hudson he returned with the regiment to 
Memphis, remaining there until the middle of August, when 
they were ordered to GermantoAvn. 

Col. Loomis was in command of the regiment in the fight at 
Ingraham Mills, on the 12th of October, and at Wyatt, Miss., 
on the next day, in both of which the regiment bore a conspicu- 
ous part, and for which he was highly complimented by his com- 
manding ofiicer. 

His untimely death, which occurred on Monday the 2d day of 
November, 1863, sent a thrill of horror through the entire regi- 
ment, and caused a feeling of regret and sadness in the breast 
of every ofiicer and private in that department of our army. 

His remains were escorted to Memphis with military honors, 
and every testimonial of respect was shown to his memory at 
that place. 



82 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Capt. L. B. Skinner, commander of his first and much-loved 
Company I, was appointed by Gen. S. A. Hurlbut to convey 
the lamented Colonel's remains to his heart-stricken widow, who 
is left with four helpless little ones to mourn his irreparable loss. 
His remains were interred with Masonic honors at Du Quoin, 
and followed to the grave by hundreds of the citizens of the 
town and vicinity. 

Flags were displayed, draped in mourning, business houses 
were all closed, and the whole community mourned its honored 
dead. 

At a meeting of the citizens of Du Quoin, resolutions were 
adopted expressive of their horror-stricken feelings at the man- 
ner of his death and detestation of the man who caused it, closing 
with the following : 

That in the death of Lieut. Col. Loomis, the nation has lost one of her 
bravest soldiers and purest jjatriots, and this community one of its most hon- 
ored citizens. 

That we deeply sympathize with the bereaved family of the deceased, in this 
terrible calamity. 

That the thanks of this community are tendered to Major General S. A. 
Hurlbut, Commander of the 16th Army Corps, for the appropriate tribute of 
respect paid to the deceased. 

The Masonic fraternity at Du Quoin also passed a series of 
resolutions, expressive of their respect for and attachment to 
tlifeir deceased brother ; as did also the military Masonic Lodge 
with which he was connected'. 

In regard to the manner of his death, the following correct 
account, as furnished by Major C. W. Whitsit, and published in 
the Memphis Bulletin^ is herein copied : 

Headqrs. 6th Illinois Cavalry, } 
Germantown, Nov. 7, 1863. \ 
Editor " Bulletin :" 

Sir, — I am much grieved to see that the unhappy wording of the notice of 
the shooting of Lieut. Col. Loomis, our late much loved Commanding OfiBcer, 
by Major Herrod, which appeared in your paper of the 4th, the impression is 
made that it was the result of a personal quarrel while at supper. Such was 
not the case ; and to correct the impression, which is doing injustice to the 
memory of the deceased outside of the regiment, where the circumstances are 
unknown, allow me to state the circumstances as they occurred : 

At the time, the entire effective force cf the 6th Illinois Cavalry was out 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 83 

under command of Lieut. Col. Loomis, assisting in the general operations 
against Gen. Chalmers' movements. Major Herrod being left in command of 
the ineffective force in camp, did some important ofiBcial business over his sig- 
nature, as "Major Commanding Regiment." Lieut. Col. Loomis, thinking it 
an injustice to him and his regiment, took occasion to reprimand Maj. Herrod 
for his unwarrantable assumption of jjower. 

Some bitter words passed during the interview, which was in the forenoon 
of the day on which the murder was committed. At dark Maj. Herrod came 
to headquarters and enquired for Col. Loomis, who, he was told, was at sup- 
per, but would soon be in. He proceeded immediately to the Lucken House, 
near half a mile distant, where Col. Loomis boarded, and where Col. Hatch 
and several other officers were at supper. Meeting Col. Loomis in the hall he 
accosted him thus : " Col. Loomis, you said this morning thus and so, in the 
presence of Col. Hatch ; take it back or I'll kill you." Col. Loomis replied 
in a mild tone : " Maj. Herrod, you have got a pistol in your hand, and I am 
unarmed. If you want to kill me, kill me." Maj. Herrod immediately fired; 
the first shot knocking him down, the second entering his breast, killing him 
instantly. He fired three more shots at the prostrate body, none of which 
took effect. 

This is a statement of the case just as I believe the evidence in the case, 
taken at a proper time, will make it appear. By publishing it you will do jus- 
tice to the deceased and a favor to his friends in the regiment, the men of 
which were almost universally attached to him, both as an officer and a gen- 
tleman. 

Chas. "W. Whitsit, Major, 

Com. 6th Illinois Cavalry. 

Maj. Herrod was immediately arrested by Col. Hatch, and 

conveyed to Memphis in irons, to await his trial. 

Below is a copy of the resolutions passed by the officers of 

the regiment : 

Germantown, Nov. 9th, 1863. 

At a meeting of the officers of the 6th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, of which 
Major C. W. Whitsit was Chairman, and Lieut. J. H. Benham, Secretary, the 
following officers — Capt. Joseph Corker, Capt. F. Charlesworth, Capt. W. D. 
Glass, Lieut. Geo. A. Anderson, and Lieut. H. F. Patterson — were appointed 
a Committee to draft resolutions, which were unanimously adopted as follows : 

Whereas we, the officers of the 6th Illinois Cavalry, feel it incumbent on 
us, as associates in arms with our late lamented Lieut. Colonel, R. Loomis, 
and treasuring toward him many happy remembrances, contracted through 
many trials and dangers on the field of battle in support of our country's flag, 
and in the quiet camp, to give his widowed wife and fatherless children an ex- 
pression of the feelings of regard we entertain toward him while in our midst. 

And Whereas, it pleased Almighty God in his providence to suffer the life 
of our beloved Lieut. Colonel to be taken away. Therefore, be it 



84 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Resolved, That ia him tlie country has lost a brave and sagacious leader, a 
true patriot and an ardent lover. 

2. That we as a regiment and officers, have lost a gallant commander, long 
to be remembered by us. 

3. He endeared himself to us by his kind and gentlemanly bearing, his at- 
tachment to the service, his irreproachable character, his unassuming modesty, 
and never flinching in the hour of danger to expose his life with his command 
whenever duty called, as we have witnessed on many a bloody contested field. 

4. That we most sincerely mourn and lament his loss. 

.5. That we tender to his poor, sorrow-stricken wife and children our heart- 
felt sympathy with them in this their greatest trial. 

6. That in their loss they have lost an affectionate husband, a kind and in- 
dulgent father ; his mother a dutiful son, and his sister a tender brother. 

7. That we most devoutly commend them to Him who is a husband to the 
widow and a father to the fatherless. 

(Signed) C. W. Whitsit, President. 

J. H. Benham, Secretary. 




I, T i: T T I-: N A N r .1 A M K S. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 85 



LIEUTENANT JAMES. 

The subject of this memoir, Lieut. Edavard Arthur James, 
was born in Adams, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, on the 
17th day of September, 1839. 

His parents were natives of Glasgow, Scotland, who emigrated 
to the United States and settled in North Adams in 1838. 

After a residence there of ten years, the family removed to 
Illinois, and the father of Lieut. James (who now fills the ardu- 
ous and responsible position of Provost Marshal of the 1st 
District of Illinois) purchased a farm in the town of Barrington, 
Cook county, where he lived with his family a considerable 
time, and which farm he still owns. 

Here, amidst the quiet and peaceful pursuits of a country life 
and the endearing surroundings of a happy home, the subject of 
this memoir spent his early days. 

He was possessed of a mild and pleasant disposition, and was 
much loved, not only by the members of his family, but by all of 
his young associates, to whom his agreeable manners, his oblig- 
ing disposition, the energy with which he entered into all their 
youthful sports, and the kindly feeling with which he sympa- 
thized with them in their misfortunes, greatly endeared him and 
secured for him a lasting place in their affections, which will 
never be obliterated. 

He received a good common school education, improved by 
one term at a select school, and one at the Garden City Academy, 
and having adopted mercantile pursuits as a profession, he qua- 
lified himself by studying at Sloan's Commercial College, in the 
city of Chicago, of which institution he became a graduate. 

In 1858 he went into the employment of his elder brother 
William — now Major of the 72d Illinois Volunteers — as a clerk, 
and remained in that capacity until the sale of the business 
by his brother in 1860. 

At the breaking out of the war in the spring of 1861, he was 
employed in the Quartermaster's Department in this State, un- 



86 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 

der ex-Governor Wood, and discharged his portion of the ardu- 
ous duties of that important position with the most exempLary 
fidehty, until the State organization of that department was 
suspended, by the General Government assuming the control of 
it in all the States. 

In the winter of 1861-2, he joined Capt. W. H. Bolton, 
of Chicago, in raising the distinguished Battery which bears his 
name, and so energetically was the good work prosecuted that in 
February, 1862, the Company was mustered into the service 
of the United States as Co. L, 2d Regiment Illinois Light 
Artillery, Avhen the subject of this memoir was elected junior 
1st Lieutenant, and was duly commissioned as such. 

About the middle of the following March, the company was 
ordered to the field, and left for Benton Barracks, St. Louis, 
where their horses and guns were supplied. 

After being thus prepared for active service, the company 
departed for Pittsburg Landing, and arrived there shortly after 
the bloody and memorable battle of Shiloh, and having joined 
the noble army of the Union, it participated in the siege of Cor- 
inth until its evacuation by the rebel forces under Beauregard. 
For some months the battery to which Lieutenant James was 
attached remained in that vicinity, taking part in most of the 
skirmishing which took place during the ensuing summer, but 
unengaged in any action of much importance till the bloody 
conflict at the Hatchie, in the following October, in which battle 
Company L bore a conspicuous part, and received most honor- 
able mention for heroic conduct in the various ofiicial despatches 
of the Generals in command — in all of which the name of Lieut. 
James is mentioned with distinction. 

It may not be out of place in this connection to furnish the 
following brief extracts from ofiicial documents relating to that 
engagement, which will show the estimate formed of Lieutenant 
James by his superior ofiicers. 

In General Yeatch's report the following may be found : 

As soon as this dispositiou was made, a section of Capt. Bolton's Battery, 
under the command of Lieut. James, was brought up and shelled the house 
and barn in a most effective manner, driving out the rebel picket, which fled 
to the woods on the left. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 87 

The guns by which this distinguished service was rendered 
were served by the lamented officer of whose career this is a 
brief and imperfect sketch. 

In the same report the following notices of Co. L are also 
found : 

The batteries during this time had got into position, Bolton near the road 
and Burnap on the right, and were doing most efficient service. The firing at 
first was splendid from the rebel batteries, but it gradually slackened, and it 
was evident they were being disabled by the telling shots from our side. 

And again : 

Bolton's and Mann's batteries had crossed the bridge, and kept up a 
vigorous fire on the enemy. 

In the official report of Capt. Bolton, the following is found : 

I was ordered by Gen. Veatch to forward one section to shell a house and 
barn in which the enemy were concealed, about 4.50 yards distant, on the left 
of the road leading to the river. This section I placed in command of Lieut. 
James, who fired six shells at the premises, all of which, upon examination 
afterwards, proved effective. 

I was then ordered to take my battery across the bridge and occupy a po- 
sition on the east bank, which was effected under severe fire from the enemy. 

In carrying out these orders Bolton's Battery was the first to 
cross, Lieut. James' section being in the advance. The fire from 
the rebels was most severe, and the Lieutenant's horse was twice 
wounded before the position was won. 

The following is from Major General Hurlbut's address to the 
artillerymen of the 4th Division, on the occasion of the presen- 
tation of a rebel flag to Capt. Bolton's Battery of Chicago Light 
Artillery, October 11, 1862 : 

To this Battery (Chicago Light Artillery,) I present this flag, captured 
mainly by their exertions ; as at the field of Shiloh I found it necessary to 
have dismissed from the service one battery for its dastardly conduct, so now 
I have the pleasure of saying that every officer and every soldier observed 
his duty. 

Capt Bolton, I have the pleasure of presenting to you these colors, to be 
disposed of as your Battery may decide. 

Remember, all of you, that you umst at all times be ready whenever you 
are called upon, to do the same good tvork that you did at the Hatchie.'' 

In a letter from Major C. C. Campbell, Chief of Artillery on 
Maj. Gen. Hurlbut's Stafi", we extract the following : 



88 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

I commanded all the artillery at the battle of the Hatchie. I saw this 
flag (that presented to Capt. Bolton's Battery,) unfurled and borne aloft amidst 
three columns of infantry advancing to take Spear's Battery. I being at the 
time within three hundred yards of the enemy, I read the inscription, " Clark 
County Farmers," and immediately after giving my orders, saw that flag stricken 
down by a shot fired by Lieut. E. A. James, of Bolton's Battery, who at the 
same time poured such an incessant chai'ge of grape and canister on the advancing 
foe that they were driven from the field, leaving their colors behind them. 

The Major, (after speaking of his own illness,) says : 

Lieut. Ed. James, of Bolton's Battery, died in Chicago of the same disease. 
He staid with me.the last night he was here, and left for Chicago the next day. 
He has fought his last battle. A braver boy never lived. He was under my 
eye all the time at the battle of the Hatchie, and was in fact my best ofiBcer. 

For some time before the battle, Lieut. James had been suf- 
fering from that terrible disease of camp life, diarrhoea, and was 
at the time of the engagement so debilitated, and suffering so 
acutely, that his superior officers in*ged him to abstain from 
taking part in the coming conflict ; but his ardent spirit, his 
glowing patriotism, his determination to lead his section of the 
battery, (the men of which loved him to adoration, and would 
follow him devotedly wherever he chose to lead,) and his own 
unquenchable desire to earn for himself fame and honor as a 
soldier, caused him to disregard the advice which had been 
forced upon him. He went into the fight sick and exhausted, but, 
nevertheless, was in the saddle from early morn till the close of 
day, when the battle was won, and he earned the distinction 
which will ever encircle his name. 

But the honor was dearly purchased — life was the price to 
pay. Within a few days the inroads of the disease became so 
terrible that he was completely prostrated, and having received 
leave of absence from Gen. Hurlbut, he with difficulty reached his 
home, where, on the 2d November following, surrounded by his 
sorrowing family, he breathed his last, and another young life, 
for the cause of freedom, was laid on the altar of his country. 

In years to come, when the history of this great war shall be 
read as a thing of bygone days, the name of Edward A. James 
will be found high up in the niches of the temple of fame, en- 
shrined in the hearts and watered by the tears of an appreciative, 
grateful, and, let us hope, a reunited and happy people. 




CORPORAL DAVIM. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 89 



CORPORAL DAVIS. 

Corp. Redeck Weed McKee Davis Avas born on the 28tli of 
June, 1836, in the city of Wheeling, Virginia, amd when only 
one year old came with his parents to Peoria, Illinois. He was 
the youngest son of the late Samuel H. Davis, a veteran printer 
and editor, well known in New York, Virginia and Illinois. 

McKee Davis was a precocious child, and acquired the ele- 
ments of learning very rapidly, but was always quiet and gentle 
in his disposition, cool and deliberate in judgment and action — 
evidently domestic in his habits, he thought his home the most 
blessed place in the world. 

He was, however, full of life, brilliancy of wit ; active, gener- 
ous, and brave almost to a fault. We Avill pass over the early 
part of his life, merely glancing at the time when he entered 
life's great arena, and with a printer's " stick and rule," to work 
as a "jour" in Peoria, Bloomington and Davenport. 

Next we find him in possession of a small printing establish-- 
ment in Onarga, Iroquois county, where for some time he 
published and edited a weekly journal known as the Onarga 
Mercury. Here, also, he was united in marriage with Miss 
Caroline E. Newell, daughter of T. A. Newell, one of the 
founders of that town ; after which, not being sufficiently sus- 
tained, he removed to Peoria and again entered an office as a 
journeyman. 

At the commencement of this unnatural war, his soul was fired 
with an ardent desire to go forward in defense of his country's 
flag, Avhicli had been so basely attacked at Sumter, but so well 
defended by the gallant Anderson and his noble band ; but the 
tieg of a wife and widowed mother deterred him. 

At the third call of his country, in 1862, he could resist the 
impulses of duty to his country no longer, and on the 22d of 
July of that year he enlisted in the 77th Regiment of Illinois 
Volunteers, Co. E. This regiment has been truly a fightino- 



90 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

one. At Arkansas Post the 77tli distinguished itself, and so 
in every battle in which it has taken a part. 

In a letter to his wife, Corp. Davis says : " My parting with 
you was sad indeed, and prepared me for scenes of the same 
kind on leaving Peoria, the home of my childhood. Dear, 
beautiful city, shall I ever behold thee again ? Tomb of my 
honored father, farewell ! Memories of bygone days, visions 
of the blessed past will cheer me on my onward march, while 
love of country will nerve my arm to defend with my life if need 
be, her rights and her flag. In Cincinnati and elsewhere we 
have been received with cheers and kindly greeting ; but in this 
little city (Covington, Ky.) 'on the old Kentucky shore,' but 
two houses were seen with the stars and stripes — we cheered 
them lustily." 

Of the first skirmish he was in on their march from Coving- 
ton to Richmond, Ky., he says : " You know, dear mother, I 
am not a coward, but as we neared Livingston we encountered a 
squad of the enemy — a pretty large squad, too. A skirmish 
ensued, and as the bullets whizzed about my head like a hail- 
storm of lead, I never was so completely 'scared' in my life, 
and the first time I fired, the gun 'kicked.' After that, how- 
ever, I could load and fire as well as any of them, and faced the 
haughty foe with a firm and steady purposfe to perform my duty 
bravely and faithfully. I am of the same metal as the foe, for 
I, too, am a Southerner, but, thank God, I am one who loves 
the old ship of state. In this skirmish I had a narrow escape ; 
a bullet passed through my cap." 

In marching through Kentucky they were in many severe 
skirmishes, made long, tedious marches, and at Richmond made 
some important captures. 

After the battles at Vicksburg on the 28th, 29th and 30th of 
December, 1862, he wrote : " Our division (A. J. Smith's) 
suffered greatly, but my life has been thus far spared. We 
hoped our forces would be triumphant, but the enemy was too 
strongly fortified. At the third day's battle we beat a hasty 
retreat." 

At Arkansas Post he was wounded ; but before receiving the 
wound he had acted a most courageous part. In a letter, after 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



91 



this battle, lie says : " The heart-rending sights I have witnessed 
since entering Fort.Hindraan, no pen can adequately describe. 
One poor fellow, a noble-looking rebel, too much so for a rebel, 
held in his hand the picture of a beautiful woman and her babe 
— no doubt his wife and child. He was dead, but in the agony 
of death, seemed to have pressed this fond memento to his breast. 

"About noon on Sunday, January 11th, 1863, the battle of 
Arkansas Post commenced in earnest. Our regiment was held 
as a reserve, a mile from the scene of conflict. A comrade and 
myself (John Mclntyre) were together ; we spent the leisure 
time afforded us in talking of death, reading the Bible, and 
prayer. While thus engaged the order came to advance at 
double quick. We rushed forward and went into the hottest of 
the fio;ht. We left-flanked and commenced the fire, crawling 
very cautiously, and rising now and then to see the faces in the 
front. I tell you it was a solemn time. The 28th Ohio had 
got out of ammunition and we had to go ahead. We rushed 
past them, and met a regiment running ; we cheered them on by 
a shout of ' God and our country,' and they took fresh courage, 
rallied, and faced the enemy. We had got to the end of the 
road and w^ere driving the enemy gloriously, when I was wounded 
and taken off the field. Soon after, poor John Mclntyre was 
killed, but I trust that in that hour of prayer a few hours pre- 
vious, he was prepared for his great change." 

He was in front of Vicksburg doing good service in digging 
the canal ; was afterwards at Milliken's Bend ; was in all the 
series of battles from Grand Gulf to the rear of Vicksburg, 
fighting bravely and also doing good work as opportunity offered 
in his heavenly Master's service. 

On the 22d of May he received a mortal wound on the left 
thigh, while nobly defending the flag of his country. The limb 
was amputated, but he sank beneath the shock to his system, 
and on the 27th, at perfect peace with his Saviour, he passed 
away. His last words were, " My God, my wife and child, my 
country for which I die." 

The following is an extract of a letter from the Chaplain of 
the 77th Regiment, addressed to the mother of Corp. Davis : 



92 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



Near Yicksburg, May 29th, 1863. 
Dear Madam : I would fain be the messenger of good news to you, but 
God in wisdom has ordained otherwise. 

We had hoped your son would be able to bear the shock to his system by 
amputation, but the ordeal was too severe. He lingered till the night before 
last, when he dropped away. ***•■**** 

I would again bear testimony to his truly Christian character, and to his 
devotion to his country — his brave and soldierly bearing at all times. * * 

We buried your sou's body on a hill beside others who fell with him. It 

was my privilege to perform that last sad office for him, and to pray for you 

and our suffering country beside his open grave. May the Lord comfoi't and 

bless you, my friend. 

Wm. G. Pearce, Chaplain, 



77th Illinois Volunteers. 



Mrs. M. B. Davis. 



Solemn funeral services -were held in the Congregational 
Church at Onarga, on the Sabbath after the sad notice of his 
death was received, when a most appropriate sermon was de- 
livered by the Rev. Mr. Winters, from 2d Cor. iv., 17-18. 



MARTYRS ANl) HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 9o 



CAPTAIN WARD. 

Capt. Guy Carlton Ward, the eldest son of Alva and Pris- 
cilla H. Ward, Avas born at Scipio, Cayuga county. New York, 
March 21st, 1831. 

In boyhood he was of a reth-ing disposition, but of studious 
habits — faithful, truthful and manly in all his actions. He 
seemed to pass from youth to manhood at a very early age, tak- 
ing a position among men, and acting an earnest, firm and noble 
part in life. He was above all other things a dutiful child, 
promptly obeying his parents in all their commands. He was 
free from all low and debasing conduct, never being known to 
be guilty of any mean or belittling action, but conducted him- 
self as if he thought that life was real and earnest. He looked 
the stern and solid realities of the world full in the face, and 
with a stout heart and strong will he determined to conquer in 
the great battle of life. He was always regarded as a diligent 
student, especially in history and biography. He was well read 
in the politics aiid current literature of the times. His early 
manhood was passed in Ohio, where he struggled hard with his 
parents — who were blessed with a numerous family — to obtain 
an honest livelihood and be known and honored amongst men. 
At the age of nineteen years he went to Cincinnati and learned 
the trade of a house mason. He served his time as an appren- 
tice with jNIr. John Earhart, with whom, at the expiration of his 
apprenticeship, he entered into business as a partner. He served 
as an apprentice and partner in business for five years. The 
firm failed through the operations of the principal. A noble 
and brave man's qualities shine in adversity as well as in pros- 
perity. Capt. Ward's first attempt in business resulted in a 
bitter experience. He left Cincinnati and settled in Du Quoin, 
Perry county, Illinois. 

While in Cincinnati, Capt. Ward had connected himself with 
the Freemasons, among whom he was always held in the highest 
esteem. He was Master of the Lodge in Du Quoin, and also 



94 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

held responsible positions in the Royal Arch Chapter established 
in that place. In the Grand Lodge his learning and talents as 
a bright and intelligent mason were brought into requisition by 
his appointment as a member of important committees. He 
ever in all the commanding positions which he occupied among 
the masonic fraternity, acquitted himself with satisfaction to 
his friends and honor to the institution. He was the chief man 
in starting and sustaining a Lodge of Masons in connection with 
the regiment to which he belonged. He was untiring in his 
labors and constant in his devotion to the principles of the 
order. 

Capt. Ward settled in Du Quoin just as that thriving village 
was starting into existence. His deportment was so praise- 
worthy in all the relations of life that he at once won the con- 
fidence and esteem of the leading citizens of the place. He was 
for several successive years elected Town Trustee, and was also 
President of the Board. His habits of industry and his strictly 
moral character, ranked him among wise and good men as a 
young gentleman of high promise and commanding usefulness in 
the world. He had been taught the great truths of Revelation 
by his parents. These he firmly believed ; his faith in them 
was never shaken. He united with the Presbyterian Church 
in Du Quoin, of which William S. Post, D.D., now Chaplain of 
the 81st Illinois Infantry, was at that time pastor. The warmest 
friendship and most intimate relationship always existed between 
Capt. Ward and his friend and pastor, the Rev. Dr. Post. 

In the year 1857, Capt. Ward married Miss Lizzie Bell Ro- 
binson, only daughter of William and Nancy Robinson, of 
Clermont county, Ohio. Their first child, Anna Cora, died in 
the summer of 1859, at the age of eight months. Mrs. Ward 
died of that cruel and lingering disease, consumption, March 12, 
1861, leaving Capt. Wai'd with one little son named Willie Post. 
Soon after this domestic affliction, the flag of his country was 
fired upon at Fort Sumter, which aroused all the lofty patriotism 
and sublime devotion to the stars and stripes which glowed in the 
brave and manly breast of Capt. Ward. He immediately went 
to work with all his energies — his whole soul being enlisted in 
the righteous cause — raising volunteers for the Union army, on 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 95 

the first call of the President for 75,000 men. The company 
was soon raised. C. H. Brookings, who fell bravely in the siege 
of Vicksbm'g, in May, 1863, was chosen Captain, S. R. Wetmore 
was elected 1st Lieutenant, and Guy C. Ward, 2d Lieutenant. 
This was the first company raised for the service south of the 
Ohio and Miss. R. R., which, after its organization, became Co. 
G, 12th Illinois Infantry, Colonel (now General) John McArthur, 
commanding. The company was named by the ladies the " Du 
Quoin Braves." They left Perry county on the 28th of April, 
and were mustered into the service on the 3d day of May, at 
Springfield. During the three months of their enlistment, the 
regiment was stationed most of the time at Cairo, 111. When 
the regiment was reorganized, and enlisted for three years or 
during the war, Lieut. Ward was unanimously elected Captain. 
He recruited his company in a short time, and rejoined his re- 
giment with an intelligent and resolute band of men. The regi- 
ment was soon ordered to Paducah, Ky., where he remained till 
it was deemed necessary to occupy Smithland, when his com- 
pany was sent as part of the garrison of that post. He remained 
there until arrangements were made for the attack on Fort 
Henry, when he was ordered back to his regiment at Paducah, 
The regiment left Paducah, Gen. Smith commanding the divi- 
sion, Colonel McArthur the brigade, and Lieut. Col. Chetlain 
the regiment. The division landed three miles below Fort 
Heiman, and moved to the assault at once. The enemy fled 
and left the works in our possession. From here the regiment 
marched to the attack on Fort Donelson. Through that event- 
ful siege and battle Capt. Ward sustained his share in all the 
fatigues and hardships attending the memorable contest. On 
Saturday morning, Feb. 15th, when attacked by the enemy at 
daylight by overwhelming numbers, "he led his men to the con- 
flict with as much coolness," says Capt. Wetmore, whose sketch 
of Capt. Ward we are quoting, " as he would have done had it 
been a dress parade." His regiment was flanked three times and 
forced back, but never lost their order or formation. Finally, 
when out of ammunition, the regiment was ordered back, and 
soon after the enemy retired without effecting the object of cut- 
ting his way out of the fort. Gen. McArthur spoke in the 



9(3 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



liiglicst terms of the coolness and courage of Capt. Ward. Five 
men were killed and twenty-one were wounded in his company. 

After the occupation of Fort Donelson, the regiment was or- 
dered to Clarksville, Tenn., and in a few days, still on to Nash- 
ville ; thence back to Clarksville, where the regiment received 
their baggage, which had been left at Fort Heiman. The men 
had been seventeen days without tents, blankets, or a change of 
clothing. 

Here the company lost the first man from sickness since the 
first organization of the regiment on the 26th day of April, 
1861 — a period of eleven months — which shows the care and 
attention they had received from their Captain during all that 
time of exposure, which included everything to which a soldier 
is subject. There were plenty of houses belonging to secession- 
ists in Clarksville, but they were considered too good for Federal 
soldiers to use. 

From here the regiment was sent by steamer to Pittsburg 
Landing, where it was engaged in the battle of Shiloh. Capt. 
Ward had not been able for duty for a long time ; Lieut. J. F. 
Watkins, who commanded the company, was seriously wounded 
in the first day's fight at Shiloh. The 1st Lieut., J. McArthur, 
was on GcH. McArthur's Staff. No commissioned officer being 
on hand to command the company, Capt. Ward left his cot and 
led his men in the second day's engagement. The loss of the 
company was heavy in the battle. The men maintained in this 
hard-fought contest their well-earned reputation for firmness and 
bravery. When the regiment was ordered to Corinth in pursuit 
of the enemy, Capt. Ward started with his men, but he was or- 
dered back to camp, where he remained very sick with diarrhoea 
for a long time, till he was sent to Cincinnati. As soon as he re- 
gained his health, he returned to his regiment at Corinth. He 
was engaged in the battle of luka, but from the position which 
was assigned the regiment it did not take an active part in the 
conflict. After the battle of luka, part of the regiment, under 
Capt. Ward's command, was ordered to Burnsville ; the rest, 
commanded by Col. Chetlain, went to Corinth. On Friday the 
3d day of October, the companies in charge of Capt. Ward were 
ordered from Burnsville to Corinth. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



During the night, Capt. Ward, with his men, slept on their arms 
on the battle-field at that place, ready at the word of command 
to renew the engagement with their companions in arms in the 
morning. The 12th Regiment, then in command of Capt. Ward, 
was held with the rest of the brigade to which it belonged, as a 
body of reserve. One of om- batteries was captm'cd by the 
rebels, but before they had time to turn the guns on our men, 
the 12th Illinois Regiment, in conjunction with a regiment from 
Ohio, was ordered to charge upon the enemy and retake the 
battery. In leading his men to this gallant charge, waving his 
sword in his hand while rallying his "Braves," shouting in a 
clear, shrill voice, which was distinctly heard above the thunder 
of battle, " Onward, men, onward," Captain Ward fell, pierced 
through his head with a minie ball. He fell just at the moment 
victory was perching upon our banners — not only those of the 
12th Regiment, but also of the whole Union army. No man fell 
in that bloody contest more conspicuous for heroic daring than 
Capt. Ward. With him perished in the same engagement sev- 
eral of his brave men. 

In a general order issued by Gen. Rosecrans after the battle, 
the name of Capt. Guy C. Ward was mentioned with the high- 
est meed of commendation and praise as one of the heroes and 
martyrs in the stern and awful conflict. His remains were 
brought home to Du Quoin by his father, where his funeral was 
attended by an immense concourse of mourning friends. He was 
buried with Masonic honors in the graveyard, where rest by his 
side his beloved wife and child. A beautiful monument has 
been erected to his memory Avith the appropriate lines — 



Plow sleep the brave, who sink to rest 
With all their country's honors blest." 



98 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



CAPTAIN TUCKER. 

Capt. Lansing B. Tucker was born in the city of Rochester, 
State of New York, on the 28th of May, 1844. He was an 
unusually intelligent boy, and of an affectionate disposition. 

He early manifested a talent for mechanical arts, and a taste 
for a soldier's life, which was encouraged by the military associa- 
tions of his family, his father. Col. Joseph H. Tucker, having 
been connected with the volunteer service during the entire life 
of Capt. Tucker. 

Among his earliest studies were works on military organiza- 
tion, tactics, science and discipline. For some years prior to 
the breaking out of the present Avar, ho commanded a military 
company composed of students in the Chicago University, Avhere 
he Avas also a student. 

He was universally esteemed by his teachers and fellow 
students, ahvays prompt and proficient in his studies, and 
exceedingly frank and manly in his intercourse Avith all. 

At the commencement of the Avar, he earnestly entreated per- 
mission to volunteer into the service of his country, although but 
sixteen years of age, yet, from his manly appearance, he Avould 
have been regarded as some years older. His family did not 
encourage his cnterina; the serAdce at this time, on account of 
his youth and their desire to have him complete his studies. 
However, in the year 1862, upon the urgent call of the Govern- 
ment for fresh troops, his entreaties could not be louger resisted, 
and he, together with many of the students comprising the 
military company in the University, A^oluntccred their services, 
and organized a company for the 60th Regt. 111. Volunteers, of 
Avhich he Avas immediately elected Captain. 

Although the youngest officer in his regiment, Capt. Tucker 
was regarded as its best drill master, and Avas a universal favorite 
among both officers and men. His regiment was placed on 
duty at Camp Douglas, in charge of prisoners of Avar, where it 
was stationed when Capt. Tucker was taken sick of camp fever. 
For two weeks he lay uncomplainingly on a bed of sickness and 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 99 

suffering, and no murmur escaped his lips ; once only, he ex- 
pressed regret to a friend, who stood at his bedside, that he 
could not have passed away amid the " cloud and lightning" of 
the battle-field, fighting for his country's flag. Almost his last 
thoughts and words were of his country. At times, when in the 
delirium of fever, he expressed anxiety for the welfare of his 
men, and gave orders in regard to his company. He died on 
the 18th day of August, 1862. 

The funeral obsequies occurred on Thursday, Aug. 20th, in 
the grove of the University grounds, at Cottage Grove, near 
Chicago. The military escort on that occasion consisted of the 
whole of the 69th Regiment, in command of Col. Hough. The 
music was supplied by the Light Guard Band, and was peculiarly 
touching and appropriate. Rev. Dr. J. C. Burroughs, President 
of the University, delivered the funeral discourse, after which 
an opportunity was afforded all present to look at the corpse of 
the deceased soldier. The coffin containing his mortal remains 
stood upon a platform erected for that purpose, in the centre of 
the group, and was enveloped in that time-honored emblem of a 
soldier's fidelity and love — the Stars and Stripes. At the head 
of the coffin, draped in black, hung the beautiful silk flag which 
the young ladies of the Dearborn Female Seminary, Chicago, 
presented to the University Cadets, of which the deceased was 
Captain, June 21st, immediately after its organization. Capt. 
Tucker received the flag, and replied to the address of the young 
ladies in the followino; words : 

We give you our warmest thanks for this beautiful banner, and, as we 
receive it from your fair hands, its every shining star and glowing stripe be- 
comes dear to our hearts. We do not know how soon our country may need 
our little band ; but we are ready to respond to her call, and, under this flag, 
march to '■ victory or death." We shall never cast to the breeze its folds 
vt'ithout thinking of the fair ladies who gave it to us, in their defence, and for 
our country's glory we shall fight valiantl}", wreathing our banner with triumph, 
or finding in its folds a winding-sheet. 

On June 7, 1861, at the solemn funeral of Judge Douglas, the 
University Cadets, under command of Capt. Tucker, were as- 
signed the duties of a guard of honor to receive the procession, 
and mounted guard around the grave, their lines encompassing 
an area of about three acres. 



100 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

The publication of the classes of the University — tlie Index 
Universitatis — thus discourses : 

Among those who have gone to the field of battle, are a large proportion of 
the young men who have filled our colleges. We have been obliged to bid 
farewell to many of our fellow students, who have felt it their duty to give up 
the delightful pursuit of knowledge — to leave our classic halls, and go forth 
to fight the battles of their country. Many of them have breasted the storm 
of battle, and stood firm in the thickest of the fight, winning laurels for bravery 
and daring. Some have been wounded, and others have fallen by disease. 
Among the latter is the much-lamented Capt. Tucker, who, before he entered 
the army, was Captain of our University Cadets, and had won the affection of 
the entire company, as well as of his fellow students. 

The folloAving order, by Lieut. Col. Pickett, gives an estimate 
of the esteem in which the young soldier was held : 

Headqrs. 69th Regt., Camp Douglas, Aug. 18, 1862. 

Special Order, JYo. 28. — The Lieut. Colonel commanding has the painful 
duty of announcing to the regiment the death of Captain Lansing B. Tucker, 
at the residence of his father, Col. Joseph H. Tucker, this afternoon at half- 
past one o'clock. 

In making this mournful announcement the Lieut. Colonel commanding can- 
not permit the occasion to pass without paying a brief tribute to the memory 
of our brother officer. But young in years, having but recently reached his 
18th birthday, he was yet old enough to understand and practice the duties of 
a soldier and a Christian gentleman. A strict disciplinarian, who required and 
enforced implicit obedience, he yet bore in mind tliat his soldiers were men. 
The decease of Capt. Tucker was no ordinary cakimity at the present time, 
when our country needs the help of all her sons. 

"With a well balanced and well disciplined mind, a brave, warm, true heart, 
and a fixed and settled determination to make a military life his profession, it 
is but the truth to say that had his life been spared, he must have risen to dis- 
tinction as a defender of his country's flag. All his tboughts seem to have 
been engrossed with his duties as a soldier, and even in his last moments, when 
the kind physician endeavored to soothe his pains by the administration of a 
cool draught, he said : " Wait, wait, till the fight is over ! Forward !'' In 
his dying moments he did not forget Company C. But wliy extend this 
eulogy ? Many of you enjoyed his personal friendship, and all respected his 
soldierly qualities, 'iliough but two moons have waxed and waned since we 
made his acquaintance, his true nobility of soul bound this regiment to him 
with "hooks of steel." Truly can it be said of our boy-captain, 

" None knew him but to love him. 
None named him but to praise." 

T. J. Pickett, 
E. M. Beardsley, Adjt. Lt. Col. Com'dg 69th Regt. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 101 



LIEUTENANT EAMES. 

Lieut. Charles A. Eames was born in Rushville, Schuyler 
county, Illinois, on the 18th of April, 1840, His parents, 
Cutler Eames and Abbie F. Eames, are still living, and reside 
in Beardstown, Cass County. They are natives of Boston, 
Massachusetts, and resided there until 1835, when they emi- 
grated to the West, and settled in Rushville. In 1846, they 
removed to Beardstown. At that time their son, Charles, 
who was six years old, entered the juvenile department of the 
public school, where he continued in attendance until December, 
1835. From the time he entered school until leavino- it, after 
acquiring the highest branches of an English education, no pupil 
was more esteemed by his teachers, and none sooner mastered 
their lessons in the academic department. In mathematics he 
excelled, his mind being peculiarly adapted to the solution of 
difficult problems. His preceptor, the Rev. Professor J. Barwick, 
gave him the highest meed of praise as a scholar, and a young 
man of the most correct deportment. At school, and in his sub- 
sequent business, he evinced that logical quality of mind that 
fitted him for the exercise of strategy and command in the field. 

In December, 1855, he became engaged as a clerk in the 
banking-house of J. C. Leonard k Co., in the city of Beardstown, 
and remained constantly in their employ, faithfully discharging 
his duties, until he entered the army. When the first company 
was organized in Cass county by Capt. Thomas Thompson, for 
the war, in the spring of 1861, Chas. A. Eames left his situation 
and a salary of seven hundred dollars per annum, for the posi- 
tion of a private soldier in Company A of the 14th Regiment. 
Some of his associates sought to dissuade him, but the noble 
youth was fully determined to give his services to his country. 
Whatever the dangers and privations might be, he was sure to 
reap the rich reward of an approving conscience. 

After serving two or three months in the 14th, he was granted 
a furlough, with permission to recruit. After recruiting some 



102 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

time, he, with his men, were attached to Company G of the 32d 
Regiment Illinois Volunteers, of which he was elected 2d Lieut. 
Co. G was commanded hy Capt. Jonathan Moore — the regiment 
by Col. John Logan. This regiment held Fort Henry while 
General Grant's army besieged and captured Fort Donelson. 
While there, Lieut. Fames acted as Assistant Adjutant of the 
regiment. 

The phenomena of mind is not always truly made by externals. 
Lieut. Fames was only known and appreciated by those who 
came in contact with him ; he was reserved in his manner, and 
generally taciturn with those whose age seemed to him to de- 
mand an acknowledgment of superiority. Mr. Leonard, in 
Avhose employ he had been for seven years, had the most implicit 
confidence in his accuracy and integrity. The connection of the 
two partook more of the character of a paternal relation than 
one based upon mere interest. No heart was more sad than 
that of his old friend and patron when the young Lieutenant was 
consigned to his early tomb. 

In the army, by reason of the close association necessitated 
by the discipline, he soon became endeared to all the members 
of the company, and especially to the officers of the regiment. 
In the organization of the 32d, it was, like nearly all other vol- 
unteer regiments, composed of undisciplined officers and men, 
and unskilled in the science of war. An opportunity was, there- 
fore, affi3rded to those whose minds were adapted to the science, 
to recommend themselves to the notice of their superiors. Lieut. 
Fames, though unassuming in his manner, was vigilant and ener- 
getic in the performance of his duties, and hence displayed those 
qualities of mind that recommended him to the regard of his 
commanding officer. It Avas stated by Col. Logan that he was 
the best disciplinarian in the regiment ; never did he see any 
one that learned the tactics with such facility, and, in the field, 
his mind seemed to comprehend combinations intuitively. 

At the battle of Shiloh, Captain Moore, being advanced in 
years, was unable to lead the company to the field, and the 1st 
Lieutenant, whose fighting proclivities led him to the river, the 
command devolved upon Lieut. Fames. On the 6th of April, 
the first day of the battle. Company G was ordered to the sup- 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 103 

port of a battery, which the enemy endeavored to take. When 
the company took a position near it, the Lieut, ordered his men 
to lie down ; and while they were partially protected from the 
murderous fire of the enemy, Eames stood up a little in the rear 
and calmly surveyed the field of carnage, until orders came to 
take another position. During this time the fire from the enemy 
on and about the battery was severe and incessant. Presently, 
orders came to the company to half-wheel and march to the left, 
and in executing this order they had to cross a fence. Just after 
crossing, Lieut. Eames was struck with a ball and fell dead, 
pierced through the heart. When the battle was over, on the 
evening of the next day, his comrades found him on the same 
spot where he died, and carried him from the ground. 

Thus fell the noble youth, the aff"ectionate son, the pride and 
joy of a mother's heart. It is said that "death loves a shining 
mark." The ball that pierced his heart could find ho more 
shining mark on the bloody field of Shiloh. A life with high 
hopes, with the promise of distinction in the field, and honor and 
sweet enjoyment in the peaceful walks of life, was offered up on 
the altar of his country. 

During his leisure hours, Lieut. Eames had applied himself to 
the study of German, and had mastered that language. While 
in the service he carried with him a German Testament, and 
after the battle of Shiloh, the book, with his name in it, was 
found on the field and brought to his mother. 

His brother, Francis C. Eames, on hearing of his death, pro- 
ceeded to Pittsburg Landing, procured the body and brought it 
home for interment. 

The memory of his sweet and peaceful life may be eifaccd, 
but the blood of the martyr that enriches the soil of the LTnion 
shall not be forgotten by a grateful people. 



104 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



PRIVATE AUSTIN. 

Abraham Harrison Austin, son of Freeman and Plioebe 
Austin, was born on the 16tli of February, A. D. 1844, in the 
town of Porter, county of Niagara, state of New York, Avhere 
the family remained until the autumn of 1850, when they re- 
moved to the town of Ophir, Lasalle county, Illinois, which has 
since been their residence. 

Abraham was studious, energetic and determined, and en- 
dowed with quick and accurate perception, so that whatever 
subject his mind grappled with, it was as speedily mastered. 

On the war breaking out, he wished to enlist, but his age 
prevented him. The solicitations of his friends held him back 
until the call of "six hundred thousand more," in August, 1862, 
when no further persuasion could influence him. His only reply 
to their entreaties was — " My country needs men ; many must 
go, and I am one. Many of those Avho go will fall, and it may 
as well be me as some others. I would rather die than live to 
see my country destroyed by traitors. If that day ever dawns, 
I do not want to live to see it." 

He enlisted under Capt. W. H. Collins, Co. D, 104th Illinois 
Infantry, commanded by Col. A. B. Moore, on the 14th August, 
1862, and was with the regiment through all its weary marches, 
sleeping most of the time in his blanket on the ground without 
a tent, until the battle of Ilartsville, Tenn., on the 7th Decem- 
ber, 1862, when he fell to the ground, pierced through the head 
by a rebel bullet. He lingered in terrible pain for about twenty 
hours, and died in the hospital, and was buried in a soldier's 
grave in the village churchyard, among his brother soldiers who 
"fought and bravely fell" on that field of battle. 

His Captain says of him: "He was one of the best, if not 
the best soldier in the company — perhaps in the regiment." 
And, officially, in his final papers, he remarks : " He was ever 
a brave and faithful soldier. Never asked to be relieved from 
duty. He fell fighting at Hartsville, Dec. 7th, 1862." 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



105 



LIEUTENANT WOOD. 

Lieut. Wellington Wood, son of Timothy and Rebecca 
Wood, was born in the beautiful manufacturing town of Moline, 
Rock Island county, Illinois, on the 3d day of September, 1839. 
His father was one of the earliest settlers, and one of the parties 
Avho laid out the town in lots for settlement. Lieut. Wood here 
grew up a high-spirited and gifted youth, and fond of the na- 
tural sports of this period of gladsome life. During the spring 
of 1857, he attended the school at Evanston, 111., and for some 
time the High School of Moline. He had an excellent and re- 
tentive memory, and his natural powers were of a high order, 
which we find first exercised in reading the " Declaration of In- 
dependence," for a Fourth of July celebration on Rock Island, 
in the year 1859. 

At the age of twenty-one years, he, with a school class-mate, 
(C. W. Skinner, 5th Wis. Regt.) wrote a play in six acts, which 
was considered of some merit, and performed it at the Moline 
High School Exhibition. 

He had commenced the study of law, but when the war broke 
out, the names of Scott and Ellsworth inspired him with emo- 
tions of patriotic ardor, and on the first call he enlisted as a 
private in the 19th Regt, 111. Vols., (the Chicago Zouaves) now 
so noted for their disciphne and fighting qualities. While at 
Chicago he was a candidate for the 2d Lieutenancy, but failino- 
to acquire that position, he was immediately appointed Orderly 
Sergeant, in which capacity he served during the march throuo;li 
Missouri. At Cairo, 111., he was temporarily attached to the 
27th Regt. 111. Volunteers, as Drill Master, for a period of four 
months. He was commissioned as 2d Lieut, of Company H, 
December 1st, 1861. 

He was a graceful rider, and it over appeared that liis great 
object, his particular forte, Avas to ride horses and command men. 
He was a splendid marksman with both pistol and rifle, and as a 
sportsman, for "shooting on the wing," seldom met his equal; 



106 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

in fact lie excelled in almost everything he attempted, which 
made him a favorite with all who knew him. 

He combined in his nature all those elements essential to re- 
spect and love. Possessed of an active mind, disciplined and 
refined by education, he united with it a kind and gentle dispo- 
sition, rendering him at once a friend whose friendship, based 
upon truth and honor, would outlive the cold embrace of death. 
Manfully did he discharge his duties as a soldier. The records 
of this war can point to but few (if any) nobler examples of 
heroic devotion to his country than that of Lieut. Wellington 
Wood. 

During his campaigns with the 19th, he did not neglect writ- 
ing home to his parents. In a letter to his mother, he writes : 

Be comforted, dear motlier, with the reflection that your absent soldier 
sons * cannot, tvill not forget a mother's teachings, even amid the rough asso- 
ciations that now surround them. Although they may seem careless and 
indifferent, a mother's influence is with them still. And now I must close, 
bidding you be ha2)py in the thought that your boys, now that they are far 
from home, appreciate and love you more than ever, and we earnestly hope 
that we may be able, in some measure, to reward you for your goodness and 
devotion towards us. 

In another letter, the Lieutenant writes : 

Have you heard anything of Pitts ? If you have, let me know ; and now, 
my dear father and mother, you have hvo sons in the Union Army. I hope 
you do not regret it. 'J'he various changes and vicissitudes of war have widely 
separated us. AVe may be thrown together in the heat of battle. We may 
both fall — or one may fall, and the other live. If this should prove true, let 
he that lives rejoice in his brother's blood, shed in a glorious cause. And 
now, my dear parents, 1 hope you may ever cherish an honorable and happy 
remembrance of your soldier sons. 

Expecting a battle within a few days, he says : 

But we are prepared for the trial. Those who survive will avenge the blood 
of those who fall. Should it be my fate, dear mother, to be numbered among 
the latter in the coming struggle, only remember that yours is the sorrow 
common to thousands of hearts which have been lacerated and torn by the 
fall of dear ones in the bloody strife. Think of the words of Ellsworth. 
Cherish the consolation that I am engaged in the performance of a sacred 

* This lias reference to himself and his younger brother, Pitts B. Wood, of the 2d Iowa 
Infantry, who ha? been in nearly all of the hard fought battles except Stone Kiver and 
Lookout Mountain. He was one of the first over the walls of Donelson. His comrade in 
battle was shot down on one side of him, and his Captain (Slaymaker) on the other, during 
the last mentioned engagement. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 107 



duty. Our country is writhing and bleeding on the altar of madness and 
treason, and my aim shall never be withheld as long as strength remains to 
strike a blow. 

In another letter : 

Dear parents and friends, rest assured that I shall do my duty at all liazards 
and under all circumstances. In the words of the lofty Ellsworth, (whose 
picture is now before me,) cherish the consolation that I am engaged in the 
performance of a sacred duty, and wherever I am placed, if my name shall 
happen to be pronounced, it shall never be attended with disgrace — never. 

In another : 

What a sad condition our country is in; and the gulf between the North 
and the South is widening. We can scarcely hope to see the two sections re- 
united in peace and harmony again for many years. The South is getting 
more and more embittered against the North every day. This rebellion, which 
our Government at first thought to suppress in so short a time, has assumed a 
magnitude which will take years to elfectually wipe out. But the duty of 
every patriot and lover of liberty is as plain as it was in the days of the revo- 
lution. The liberty of our fathers must be sustained at any price. Let every 
institution and law incompatible with a free and enlightened government be 
sacrificed — yes, even slavery, the bone and sinew, the root and branch and soul 
of the rebellion — be scattered and swept from the land and forever obliterated, 
to give place to a freedom and a nation which shall exist through all time. 

C. W. Skinner, writing to a friend (a teacher in the Moline 
High School,) thus speaks of the Lieutenant : 

But alas! those pleasant times can never be recalled. The old members * 
of our rhetoric class can never be assembled on the hill as in days of yore. The 
most brilliant star has fallen. Not among the friends of home and the scenes 
of his childhood did he fall, but amid the roar of cannon and rattling of mus- 
ketry. Will Wood received his call to leave all things earthly. The host of 
friends he leaves behind will take comfort in the thought that he died in a 
noble cause, fighting for the Stars and Stripes, that symbol of freedom which 
now floats proudly over his grave. Like a brave soldier he breathed his last, 
and while we mourn him as lost to us, let us who still remain in the ranks, 
fight with a sterner purpose. 

From the tone of several of his letters, it would seem he had 
a presentiment that he would never return to gladden the family 
hearth. In writing to a friend, he says : 

I am unable to say when I shall see you; the nearest I can come to it is 
sometime, I trust. But, perhaps, I never shall. If so, I hope to be remem- 

* I was a member of that " rhetoric cla.es, -' and remember Will's writiug several beauti- 
ful compositions. We usually called him " Young Thunder,"' on account of his deep, rich 
voice, or " Our Standard liearer," in consideration of his beautiful pieces. 



108 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

bered as one who, with all his faults and imperfections, loved his friends, and 
loved his country. If my spirit might be permitted to linger about the abodes 
of earth, it could hear no prouder encomium or behold not a more glorious 
inscription on my tomb than— ife died for his country. 

Illustrative of the manner in which he conducted himself 
while with the 19th, the following incidents are related : One 
morning, his uncle (D. B. Sears, Q. M. of the 27th 111.) and 
Gen. Palmer Avere talking together when the Lieut, passed bj, 
and as he passed on, said, " Good morning, uncle," at the same 
time saluting the two officers in his usual graceful manner. 
When he was out of hearing, the General turned to Sears with : 
"Who was that young man?" Sears told him it was Lt. Wood. 
"Who is Lt. Wood; I noticed he called you uncle?" "Yes," 
said Sears, "he is a nephew of mine." "Well," said the Gen- 
eral, " that ivas the most perfect salute I have seen since I've 
been in the army.'' Amongst his comrades it was frequently 
said, that whatever Will Wood did was according to "Army 
Regulations." At an exhibition drill of the 19th, on the stage 
in Nashville, Tenn., Wood was highly applauded for his skill. 
In writing to his friends afterwards, he thus characteristically 
spoke of the circumstance : 

"The papers puffed us, . . . and . . . The rebels cursed us." 
At the battle of Stone River, the Lieutenant was at the head 
and a few feet in advance of his company, waving his sword 
above his head and cheering on his men, when the fatal ball, 
supposed to have been shot by a rebel sharpshooter, struck him 
just to the right of the clasp of his sword belt. The ball passed 
through the belt, but lodged in his body, the force of which 
knocked him down, and sent his sword several feet from him. 
After he fell, his first Avords were — " Give me my sword." His 
comrades placed him behind two cottonwood or sycamore trees, 
and went on to assist in taking the rebel battery, and, as they 
came back a few minutes afterwards, they found the Lieut, had 
recrossed the river ; but they never kncAv how he had got over. 
They secured an ambulance and conveyed him to the hospital ; 
and while lying there beside Col. Scott, the Surgeon came and 
examined the Colonel, saying, ^''You're all right;" * then turning 

* Appearances were then favorable for Col. Scott's recovery, and were so up to within a 
short time even of his death. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 100 

to the Lieut., said, "I wish I could say as much for^oM." This 

statement, to one so lately full of vigor, somewhat discomposed 

the Lieut., and he anxiously bent his eyes upon the Doctor, 

with the eager inquiry — " What ! you don't think it's going to 

kill me, do you, Doctor ?" " Much depends upon yourself," 

was the only reply that could then be given. His strength of 

constitution did not avail him, however, in this his last extremity, 

and he passed away on the following Sunday. 

The annexed tribute to worth and bravery, which appeared in 

the Chicago Tribune, announced to his friends, the fate of the 

gallant Lieutenant : 

Hospital, Nashville, Tcnn., Jan. 30, 1863. 

It bath pleased Almighty God to take from us Lieut. Wellington Wood, of 
Company H, 19th (Chicago Zouaves) Illinois Volunteers. The gallant Wood 
fell in battle at Stone River, while bravely leading his men in action, in de- 
fense of his country's cause. He was a youth in years, but a host within him- 
self, and endeared to every member of our unconquered and gallant regiment. 
In him we have lost an officer of great merit, a perfect gentleman in deport- 
ment, and a thorough soldier. On picket duty and upon the battle-field he 
was always in the right place. He was not only an honor to his regiment but 
to the country he defended, and when his manly form was stricken down in 
battle his comrades in arms bore his corpse to a place of safety, and secured it 
for his friends at home — Moline, Illinois. Moline, you have lost a citizen, a 
soldier, and a gentleman. Young and comely, brave as the bravest, he was 
one of the many heroes of the 19th who fell in that battle ; but there are yet 
enough left, who will avenge the death of our brother soldier, Wellington 
Wood. The 19th, one and all, deeply sympathize with his friends at home in 
his death ; but they may rest assured that the army to which he belonged 

will long cherish the name of Lieut. Wellington Wood. 

Wm. p. White, 

Corporal, Co. G, 19th Illinois Volunteers. 

Mr. R. K. Swan, of Moline, was dispatched for the body, and 
on returning with it, funeral services were held in the Congrega- 
tional Church in Moline. Escort duty was performed by a 
company of soldiers from Post McClellan, under command of 
Capt. Robt. M. Littler. At the church, prayer was offered by 
the Rev. Mr. Milliken, the pastor. The sermon was preached 
by the Rev. Mr. Hitchcock, from Matt. ii. 15, and Luke ii. 35. 

He was buried with military honors in Moline Cemetery, and 
on the monument which marks his resting place, is the wished- 
for inscription — 

■'HE DIED FOR niS COUNTRY." 



110 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



COLONEL ROBERTS. 

Col. George W. Roberts, son of Pratt Roberts and Ann 
Wilson Roberts, was born in East Goshen township, Chester 
county, Pa., Oct. 2d, 1833. In May, 1844, he entered the 
celebrated school of A. Bolmar, at Westchester, Pa., where he 
remained four years. He completed his academic studies at the 
institution kept by Charles Bartlett, known as "College Hill," 
at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and in May, 1854, entered the Sopho- 
more class in Yale College, where he graduated with high honors 
in June, 1857. He received the degree of Master of Arts from 
his Alma Mater in July, 1860. 

He studied law in the office of Joseph J. Lewis, Esq., in West 
Chester, Pa., and was admitted to the bar, Jan. 8th, 1858. 

In 1859, he was the candidate of the Anti-Lecompton Demo- 
crats of Chester county, for the office of District Attorney, and 
although not elected, he received the full vote of the party. 

He practised law in his native county until the spring of 1860, 
when he removed to Chicago, Illinois, and entered the office of 
E. S. Smith, Esq., a prominent member of the bar of that city, 
where he remained in the active practice of his profession until 
June, 1861. 

A few days after the fatal error of the South in the bombard- 
ment of Fort Sumter, he resolved to do what he could to restore 
the authority of the Government, believing, as he said, that it 
was the duty of every man to do all in his power to put down 
the rebellion ; that he had health and strength, and should lend 
his best exertions, and life if necessary, to the support of his 
country. He became a member of a company of citizens asso- 
ciated chiefly for instruction in military tactics, and drilled in 
the ranks for about two months. He then commenced recruit- 
ing for the 42d Regiment (1st Regiment Douglas Brigade) of 
Illinois Volunteers, to which object he devoted time and money. 
Immediately upon its organization he went into camp with it, 
and whatever of inconvenience or privation there was to be en- 
dured, he shared it in common with the humblest soldier under 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. Ill 

his command. He devoted himself to the study of military 
science, for which he had a decided taste and capacity, with a 
zeal and ardor which knew no relaxation, and rendered himself 
fully competent to discharge all the duties which any position 
he might be called to fill should demand of him. 

On the 22d of July, 1861, he received a commission as Major 
of the 42d Illinois, and with this regiment soon thereafter left 
Chicago for the seat of war. On the 17th of September of the 
same year, he was elected Lieutenant Colonel, and on the 24th 
of December following, he was commissioned Colonel, in the 
place of Col. Webb, then recently deceased, which position he 
held at the time of his death. 

Col, Roberts, with his regiment, took their place in the march 
with Gen. Fremont to Springfield, Mo. He distinguished him- 
self at New Madrid ; had command for a time at Fort Holt, 
near Cairo ; was from thence ordered to Columbus, Kentucky, 
after its evacuation by the rebels ; next proceeded to Island No. 
10, where, in a daring and brilliant expedition, amidst the howl- 
ing of the tempest and the gloom of night, he spiked the guns 
of a rebel battery, which had been successful in preventing the 
passage of our gunboats — an enterprise Avhich men pronounced 
it madness to attempt. This was eff'ected without the loss 
of a single man, although a minie ball sped Avithin an inch 
of the Colonel's ear, as he stood up in the boat, after the feat 
was accomplished, calling to his marines to send her home. 

He was thence ordered to Fort Pillow, from which place he 
accompanied Gen. Pope up the Tennessee River, and covered 
himself with distinguished honor at the battle of Farmington 
Roads, where, with his single regiment (the 42d Illinois) he held 
at bay for hours a rebel force five times greater than his own, 
and by his cool and determined valor, saved the day and pre- 
vented a defeat. At the siege of Corinth he was in command 
of a brigade, and rendered services which placed him in a posi- 
tion of most enviable prominence, and secured for him a name 
which few may hope to achieve. He was in the advance, and 
was the first man to enter Corinth. In a private letter to his 
father, dated May 15th, 1862, Col. Roberts says : "Brave old 
Palmer, who was last on the field, galloped down the line in an 



112 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 

ecstasy of joy : ' gallant 42d,' he cried, as he swung his hat, ' I 
am proud to be your General ; I wish I was the father of every 
one of you.' I felt proud and happy to think that my men had 
won and received so distinguished a compliment." 

He was thence ordered to Memphis, where he again distin- 
guished himself by the efficacy of his movements against guerrilla 
bands, and in the surprise and capture of pronjinent and danger- 
ous guerrilla chiefs. From thence, with his regiment, he was 
transferred to the army under command of Maj. Gen. Rosecrans, 
and at the battle of Murfreesboro', while in command of the 3d 
Brigade of Sheridan's Division, in the terrible onset made on 
the right wing of the Union army, on Wednesday the 31st of 
December, 1862, he fell with his face to the enemy, and met a 
death as glorious as his career had been noble and manly. 

A writer in the N. Y. Tribune, describing the battles, and 
speaking of the casualties of the day, says : " Noble Roberts, 
Col. of the 42d Illinois, and commanding Sheridan's 3d Brigade, 
distinguished at New Madrid, Island No. 10, and the siege of 
Corinth, and conspicuous for his manly, personal beauty and 
chivalrous deportment, was struck down forever." He died as he 
would have wished to die. Amid the awful crash and shock of 
battle, the sky blackened with its smoke, and the earth shaking 
with its roar, gallantly holding his little band to face the fearful 
onset they were compelled to meet, that others might be saved — 
his strong arm raised, and his broad breast bared in defense of 
the country he loved so well — his soul took its flight. 

And thus he died — so young, so noble, so brave. The poet 

has sadly but truly said : 

" The good die first, 
And they whose hearts are dry as summer's dubt, 
Burn to the socket." 

Had he lived a few days longer he would have received a 
commission as Brigadier General, the order for it having been 
issued. His remains were brought to his father's residence, 
Chester county. Pa., from whence, on the 19th day of January, 
1863, they were conveyed to the Oaklands Cemetery, 

Col. Roberts possessed a clear, discriminating and vigorous 
mind. In college he was noted for his mathematical talents ; 
and his early devotion to the science, founded on the most self- 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 113 

evident of truths, was clearly visible in his modes of thought, 
and gave character to his intellect. The knowledge Avhich he 
acquired lay not in his head a crude, cumbersome map — his dis- 
criminating mind digested it and made it part of himself. 

His mode of expressing himself was felicitous. He was en- 
dowed with the gift of language in no ordinary degree. His quick 
and ready intellect would call-up from the rich and varied stores of 
his information whatever thought or fact the occasion demanded. 
His colloquial powers were remarkable, and he was a most ge- 
nial and entertaining companion. He was a man of noble im- 
pulses, of high aspirations and lofty aims, and possessed a most 
kind and generous heart. Those courtesies which so smooth and 
beautify the otherwise strong and jarring intercourse of the legal 
profession, were pre-emineyitly his. A prominent trait in his 
character was to master whatever he undertook. No impedi- 
ment, however great, could ever slacken his efforts or dishearten 
his ambition ; whatever he did was done with the will and pur- 
pose and strength of a man. His physical strength was great, 
and he seemed to possess corresponding mental ability. He was 
always cool, and deliberate, and self-possessed, never disturbed 
nor disorganized, let the storm be ever so great around him. 

The history of this war has not furnished the record of a man 
of more heroism and manly courage ; and of that long list of 
military heroes who have died in their efforts for the liberties of 
mankind, there is not one whose memory will live longer, or 
whose fame will shine brighter than that of George W. Roberts. 

On the announcement of his death, meetings of the members 
of the bar of Chester county, Pa., and of Chicago, 111., of which 
he had been a member, were held, and appropriate resolutions 
adopted. 



114 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 



CAPTAIN SMITH. 

Capt. John G. Smith was born in Whitehall, Washington cc, 
New York, December 11, 1835, and when about six years old 
immigrated with his relations to DeKalb county, Illinois. This 
country being then new, his means of education were limited ; 
but his naturally inquisitive mind thirsted for knowledge, and as 
he grew to maturer age, he took especial pains to acquire some- 
thino- more than a common education. He was a student for 
about two years at Mt. Morris Seminary, Ogle county, after 
which he was ensrao-cd about three years in teaching in Missouri. 
His disposition was kind, gentle and social. He had an agreeable 
word and pleasant look for every one. His friends were man?/; 
his enemies, if any he had, were fe2V. At the breaking out of 
the rebellion he was still in Missouri, and narrowly escaped 
being drafted into the rebel army. ' Immediately on his return 
to his old home in Illinois, he volunteered into the service of his 
country, and was chosen 1st Lieutenant in Co. B, 8th Illinois 
Cavalry. He Avas mustered into the United States service Sept. 
18, 1861, and, July 17, 1862, upon the resignation of Captain 
Whitney, he was promoted to the Captaincy, which position he 
held until his death. 

In the cause of his country Capt. Smith was a most earnest 
and ardent worker. The true spirit of patriotism fired his 
bosom. His heart and soul were in the work, and his hand was 
ever ready to do what his heart and soul conceived. 

As a companion in arms, he was sociable, affable and kind ; 
modest and unassuming, yet true to himself and his country. 
He was universally esteemed by his brother officers and beloved 
by his men. As an officer, he was brave, daring and heroic. 
He never faltered in the presence of the enemy, and his delight 
always was to move upon the foe. 

He went to tlie Potomac with the 8th Illinois Cavalry, and 
was never absent from his regiment. In the camp, on picket, 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 115 

in its long and weary marches, and in its numerous and severe 
skirmishes and battles, he shared with his regiment all its toils 
and dangers, and performed his part in making for it an envi- 
able history. 

In March, 1862, he marched with his regiment to the Rap- 
pahannock, pressing the enemy as he fell back from Manassas. 
In April of that year he sailed with the regiment down the 
Potomac to the Peninsula ; was in the battle of Williamsburg, 
Mechanicsville and Gaines Mills, and shared in the perils of that 
memorable campaign of the seven days' struggle around Rich- 
mond, and in that famous retreat to Yorktown. He arrived in 
Alexandria on the last day of August, with the regiment, just in 
time to enter upon the Maryland campaign, and here again he 
confronted the enemy heroically at Poolesville, Queenstown, 
Boonsboro' and Antietam. Recrossing the Potomac, he had 
part in the fall campaign in Virginia, meeting the rebel hosts at 
Philamont, Union, Upperville, Barbour's Cross Roads, Amis- 
ville and Little Washington. 

It was at Barbour's Cross Roads that companies A and B, 
under the leadership of Captains Forsyth and Smith, charged 
upon a rebel regiment and drove them from their guns ; but being 
unsupported, after a sharp and close contest with greatly superior 
numbers, they were compelled to fall back with a loss of two 
killed and five wounded. 

Capt. Smith passed the winter of 1862-63 with his men, most 
of the time on picket duty. The regiment was sixty days on 
duty in King George county, guarding from the Rappahannock 
to the Potomac. 

Engaged in this perilous and arduous duty, and exposed to 
the rains and storms of Avinter, ofttimes without shelter or tents, 
Capt. Smith was never known to murmur or utter one word of 
complaint. He endured all and suffered all like a true patriot 
and hero, for his country. 

He entered upon the summer campaign of 1863 with as bright 
hopes as any of his comrades, but Providence saw things differ- 
ently. In that most desperate and bloody cavalry fight of the 
war, Beverly Ford, on the 9th of June, Capt. Smith, while hold- 
ing the advancing enemy in check until our own scattered troops 



116 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

would rally and form, was Avounded by a minie ball in the left 
knee, breaking and splintering the bones. Still unflinching, 
clinging to his horse, he performed the assigned duty, checked 
the enemy, and led his squadron in good order from the contest. 

From the field he was borne to the Seminary Hospital at 
Georgetown, D. C. Here the surgeon in charge decided ampu- 
tation to be necessary. Even this operation failed in its antici- 
pated effect, and on the night of June 16, 1863, the brave Capt. 
Smith died. He died for his country — he died as many brave 
soldiers have died — like a hero — with no loved ones near to calm 
his last moments, and to whisper to him of heaven. He had 
fondly hoped they might come ; but a brother-in-law and sister 
did not arrive until after he had expired. His remains, em- 
balmed and wreathed in flowers by strangers' fair hands, were 
forwarded to his friends at SycamOre, DcKalb county, Illinois, 
for interment. And near that beautiful town, on the prairies, 
calmly sleeps the noble warrior, lamented by his friends, and 
mourned by all who knew him. Of such are the armies of the 
republic composed, and by such suff'ering and anguish is our be- 
loved country to be redeemed. 

When taking his final leave of friends and home for active 
service in the field, Capt. Smith penned, impromptu, on a blank 
leaf in a book he then presented to a much-loved and favorite 
sister, the following beautiful lines, which not only show his 
goodness of heart, and somethinp; of the 2;enius of the "rising 
man," but indicate clearly his motives for leaving the quiet of 
home for the field of deadly strife at the call of his country. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 117 



MUST GO. 

The Ship of State rides on the sea, 

Where foundering waves around her roll, 

And there's a voice, which says to nie, 
Gird on thy strengtli and nerve thy soul 

To serve thy country — thy duty first, 

When she by ti'aitois is accursed. 

Hence upon the tented field, 

Enthusiastically I go, 
Determined not to leave or yield, 

Whilst thou, my country, hast a foe ; 
And if in strife my life shall cease, 
In a soldier's grave I'll rest in peace. 

I'll be remembered, sister dear. 

Although my lot is far away; 
Thy following prayers methinks I'll hear, 

At morning's dawn and close of day. 
High heaven rewards the good and true, 
And blessings thence shall visit you. 
To say good-by rings pleasure's knell, 
But it must be said. — Adiezi ! Farewell! 

J. G. Smith. 

Sycamore, October Vdlh, 1861. 



118 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT CLARK. 

Lieut. Daniel Newton Clark was born in Hartford, Vt., 
but at a very early age removed with his mother to Massachusetts. 
His early years were passed near the sea shore, where the wild 
waves chanted strange, sad music in his boyish ears, for beneath 
them his brave father lay buried. 

Thirsting for knowledge, whilst yet a boy, he left his home 
with only his mother's blessing and the silent influences of her 
pious teachings to help him on his way. Fortune was chary of 
her gifts to him, yet, nothing disheartened, he struggled on 
until he had fitted himself for college, and entered Rochester 
University, New York, at the age of 24 years. Finding at 
length his means insuificient to go through a course of study, he 
left school, and with one "longing, lingering look" toward the 
old institution, and a deep-drawn sigh for what "might have 
been," he turned his steps to Illinois, where he spent his time 
alternately in teaching and agricultural pursuits. 

Earnest and faithful in whatever his hands found to do, hope- 
ful in adverse fortune, and possessed of sterling integrity of 
character, he won for himself many firm friends. 

When the great war-cry sounded through the land, he paused 
and listened till his heart was moved to a high and noble pur- 
pose, and though with a strong presentiment that he would fall 
on the battle-field, his name stood enrolled among the first who 
offered themselves to their country, where his brave heart and 
strong right hand did nobly their duty till laid powerless by 
death. 

He enlisted as a private in Co. B, 15tli Illinois Volunteers, 
but had successfully won the position of 1st Lieutenant at the 
time of his death. The decimated ranks of the old 15th speak 
more loudly than tongue may utter or pen shadow forth, of their 
heroic deeds and sad, untimely deaths. 

Donelson, Shiloli, Yicksburg and Jackson, bear each a proud 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 119 

record of their bravery and devotion. Some lie there un- 
coffined ; others have been borne back, as was the subject of 
this notice, to slumber near the places which so short a time 
before they had left in the flush of health and pride of manhood. 
In a letter to a friend, after the battle of Shiloh, he says : 

The first tbiug I saw, as the smoke of battle cleared a little on the enemy's 
side, was a large, new, secesh flag. Never shall I forget my feelings as the 
breeze unfolded it to our view. What! thought I, the Stars and Stripes 
give way for that Rebel flag? Never! and our hands and hearts were nerved 
with new strength to face the storm of leaden hail which seemed rained 
upon us. 

Again, he says : 

When I came off the ground, after seeing so many of our brave boys who 
had fought their last battle, I thought, what lias been their fate may ere long 
be mine; yet I cannot say at that moment I felt intimidated, or to regret the 
step I had taken. No! though I cannot banish thoughts of friends and 
home, I am ready to meet the enemy. There is one happy thought — " It is 
not all of death to die." Though my body may faU on an enemy's soil, and 
even lie there unburied, thank God! death was never written of the soul. 

Lieut. Clark died at Natchez, Miss., Sept. 28d, 1863, of 
fever, which terminated in congestive chills, after an illness of 
three days. Ever looking beyond this life to the better life to 
come, he was ready to go Avhen he heard the call, " Come up 
higher." 



120 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT ADAMS. 

Lieut. Robert A. Adams, son of James H. and Eliza Adams, 
was born in the township of Green, Adams county, Ohio, on the 
31st of March, 1841, from Avhence he emigrated to Whiteside 
county, IlL, in 1852. From that time he followed the pursuits 
of farming, and by his kindness and industry, soon won the 
esteem of most of his acquaintances. 

When the rebellion broke out,, he took a firm stand in favor 
of our glorious Union, and would have joined the army at the 
first call for volunteers, but his elder brother having left the 
family roof, and his younger brother having joined the 8th 111. 
Cavalry, he considered it his duty to stay at home and take 
care of his parents. In 1862, however, when his country called 
for more men, he then felt it his privilege to give a helping 
hand to put down the wicked destroyers of peace and unity, 
and immediately went to work in assisting to raise a company 
of volunteers for the service. On the 9th of August, the com- 
pany was organized at Albany, Whiteside county, and went 
into camp at Princeton, Bureau county, and from thence they 
went to Camp Douglas, Chicago, where they became Co. F of 
the 93d Regiment Illinois Volunteers. He was appointed 1st 
Sergeant of his company, and filled this position to the satisfac- 
tion of all his superior officers. He was never known to have 
omitted any duty, thereby gaining the regard and respect of 
his comrades. 

In writing home to his friends, while at Camp Douglas, he 
portrays the kindly feeling of brothers in arms thus : 

I am writing to-night without having tasted an}' food, as all the orderlies of 
the regiment took a vote of their companies on giving our suppers to a pa- 
roled Ohio regiment from Harper's Ferry, who, for three days, had nothing to 
eat excepting a few crackers. The vote was unanimous. I felt happy and 
slept more soundly after seeing those hungry soldiers eat our rations. This 
is the kind of material the 93d Regiment is made out of, who will never bring 
dishonor upon the grand Stars and Stripes. Trusting in a higher power than 
man, I shall endeavor to do my duty as a soldier. Fear not, dear parents, 



MARTYRvS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 121 

for me. If I fall, it -vs'lll be for my country aud that dear old flas:. May it 
long wave. 

In a letter to his sister, after speaking of home and friends, 
he says : 

Alas! where will be the many voices which used to mingle with ours in days 
past and gone? Some will be sleeping their last sleep beneath a southern 
soil, while others will be marching onwards, trusting in God for victory to 
our arms. Friends need not grieve, but be comforted, for man never fell in a 
more glorious or more nobler cause. 

Friends of the " Tornado Co." [the title of his company] can rest assured 
that they enlisted for the Union cause, and when called upon to go into action, 
will give a good account of themselves; and if any of them fall, all that they 
ask is to be remembered as among those who have done their duty as true 
patriots. 

On the resignation of tlie 1st Lientenancy of the company, 
Sergeant Adams was duly elected 2d Lieutenant on the 20th 
of March, 1863, at Memphis, Tenn. His regiment was ordered 
from thence to Lake Providence, under Gen. Grant. He was 
in the Yazoo Expedition, afterwards returning to Milliken's 
Bend, and from there to Grand Gulf, Raymond, Jackson, and 
Champion Hills, 

On the 16th of May, Lieut. Adams received two wounds — a 
severe one in the left side, and another through the thigh and 
groin — which caused his death on the 29th, at the military hos- 
pital on Ball's Plantation, near Champion Hills, Miss. His 
father says : 

His career was sliort, but his memory will remain in our hearts, and the 
cause for which we gave him will have our all, if need be, so that this accursed 
rebellion may be put down. 



122 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



THE BROTHERS McCLINTOCK. 



CAPTAIN McCLINTOCK. 



Capt. Hiram McClintock, eldest son of James and Phebeett 
McClintock, was born on ■ the 18tli of October, 1840, in Cook 
county, Illinois. His father being a farmer, Hiram was bred 
to the pursuits of a country life, until he attained the age of 
twenty, when he went to Pulaski, 111., and taught school during 
the winter of 1860-1. In the spring he returned home, and at 
the call of the President for three months volunteers, he, with 
other associates, enlisted with Capt. Hugunin, on the 24th of 
April, 1861, whose command was mustered in as Company K 
of the 12th Illinois Infantry, Col. John McArthur commanding. 
The regiment immediately went to Springfield, as a rendezvous 
for drilling. About two weeks afterwards it moved to Casey- 
ville, where they spent four weeks in guarding the railroads. 
From this place they went to Cairo, where the regiment re- 
mained until mustered out of service. Hiram, not being well 
at this time, did not re-enlist, but returned home. 

Soon after, a number of young men in Lyons formed a com- 
pany for military drill, and Hiram was chosen Captain. They 
continued their organization until the winter set in. He re- 
sumed his occupation of school teaching, and continued thereat 
till August. His patriotism at this time became too fervid for 
him to remain longer out of the service of his country, when 
men were so much needed to face a desperate enemy and save 
the government from the grasp of the despot, and he left school 
to commence the work of recruiting a company of infantry. 
L. Riley, a citizen, having got a muster roll, he and Hiram put 
their names to it, and went on together in getting up the com- 
pany, in which they succeeded. Hiram was elected 1st Lieut., 
and commissioned on the 5th of September, 1862. The com- 
pany took its place in the 127th Regiment Illinois Volunteers 
as Co. H. The regiment remained at Camp Douglas until the 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 123 

end of October, when it went to Memphis, Tenn. At this place 
thej were joined with other troops and marched to the Talla- 
hatchie, returning to Memphis. From the latter place they 
took transports to the Yazoo swamps, and fought tlie battle of 
Walnut Hills. This was the first engagement in which the 
Lieutenant took part, and from the testimony of both officers 
and men, no braver soldier was there. After that, the army 
moved to Arkansas Post, where the Federal arms were more 
successful. 

About the middle of January, 1863, he went with the army 
to Young's Point and worked at the canal. In March, he went 
with what was termed the Black Bayou Expedition, returning 
to Young's Point. 

At this time the captaincy of the company being vacant, 
Hiram was promoted and commissioned Captain, March 13th. 
After the expedition referred to, the 127th was engaged clear- 
ing a ba^^ou of logs and brush, until the beginning of May, 
Avhen Grant's army started for Grand Gulf and the rear of 
Vicksburg. He was at the battle of Champion Hills, where he 
-conducted himself bravely. On the 19th of May, a general 
charge was made on the rebel fortifications. Capt. McClintock, 
with his men, had scarcely reached the defences, before which 
his Orderly and several others had been cut doAvn, when he 
received two shots — one througli the head, and the other in 
the breast — and fell dead instantly. Col. Eldridge, in com- 
municating the sad intelligence to his parents, remarks : 

My regiment is deprived of oue of its bravest aud most promising officers, 
the army of one it could ill afford to spare. He stood by me in the thickest 
storm of battle on that fearful day. 



124 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 



CORPORAL McCLINTOCK. 

Corp. William McClintock, the second son, was born on 
the 28th of March, 1842, in Cook county, 111., and like his 
brother Hiram, followed the pursuits of farming. Feeling it to 
be his duty to answer to the call of liis country, he left the 
plow and volunteered into Co. H of the 127th Regiment Illinois 
Volunteers, and was mustered in at Chicago on the 12th of 
August, 1862. Soon afterwards he was appointed Corporal. 
He remained with the regiment at Camp Douglas until the 1st 
of November, when they moved to Memphis and the Talla- 
hatchie, returning to the former place ; from thence, on trans- 
ports, to the Yazoo swamps, and was engaged in the battle of 
Walnut Hills. At the close of that contest, he was taken sick, 
with measles, which complaint was followed by typhoid fever. 
He was on the hospital boat at Arkansas Post, then taken to 
Young's Point in January, 1863, Avhere he remained sick, and 
finally died with chronic diarrhoea on the 27th of February. 
His remains were disinterred and brought home by his father, 
and buried in the family ground at Lyonsville. His superior 
officers and associates in arms speak of him as a brave soldier, 
and ever ready to do his duty. He was of a quiet and cheerful 
disposition, and beloved by all of his acquaintances. 

Brothers in life, brothers in battle, in death they were not 
lone: divided. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 125 



CAPTAIN WOODRUFF. 

Capt. Joseph Woodruff was born in Syracuse, Onondaga 
county, N. Y., on the 7tli of September, 1829, from which phice 
he emigrated to Lasalle county, Illinois, in 1843. 

He appears to have been patriotically inclined even in his 
more youthful days ; for we find him answering to his country's 
call for troops for the Mexican war, enlisting in the ranks, and 
serving faithfully there until the close of that sanguinary contest. 

Returning home, he settled in Marseilles, Lasalle comity, 
where he was engaged in mercantile pursuits, until the breaking 
out of the present Rebellion. Fully convinced that his country 
demanded his manly assistance, he soon left the counting room 
for the camp. He recruited a company of men, and with them 
joined the 39th Illinois Regiment, (Yates Phalanx,) and was 
commissioned by his Excellency, Governor Yates, as Captain of 
Company K of that regiment, in September, 1861. 

He participated in all the varied campaigns and excessive 
labors of that regiment until the day of his death, which occurred 
on the 23d of September, 1863, in Fort Gregg, Morris Island, 
S. C, and was occasioned by the bursting of a shell thrown 
from the enemj^'s batteries on Sullivan's Island. 

Unassuming, yet courteous in his bearing, Captain Woodruff 
was highly esteemed by his civilian friends, who have joined 
with the survivors of his old company in erecting a fitting 
monument to his memory. 

His body was embalmed and sent by the officers of his regi- 
ment to Marseilles, where he leaves a widow and two children. 

Perhaps no better expression of the high respect cherished 
for him by his comrades in arms can be given than is found in 
the following order, published on the occasion of his death, and 
the resolutions adopted by the field and line ofiicers : 



126 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



Headquarters 39th III. Vols., } 
Morris Island, S. C, Sept. 25th, 1863. I 
Special Order, JYo. 63. 

With profound sorrow the Lieut. Col. Commanding announces to the regi- 
ment tlie decease of Capt. Joseph Woodruff, of Co. K, 39th 111. Regiment, 
who died in regimental hospital, Morris Island, S. C, Sept. 23d, 1863, a few 
hours after he received a fatal wound from the enemy's gun. 

Capt. Woodruff was among the many brave men who, after the first repulse 
of our inexperienced army at Bull Run, rushed forth with martial spirit to 
support the flag of our troubled country, and vindicate the majesty of her 
laws by rebels ignored. Leaving a lucrative business, a large circle of firm 
friends and a young and confiding family, he collected around his country's 
standard a company of patriots, and led them from his village home, Mar- 
seilles. Lasalle county, 111., to Camp Mather in Chicago, where he linked his 
destinies with the 39th 111. Regiment. The long and winding war-path over 
which he has gallantly led his company, the severe hardships and stern priva- 
tions he has patiently endured, and the unaffected bravery and deep-seated 
patriotism he has ever evinced, form a part of our regimental history, and 
hence need not here be enumerated. 

He entered upon the operations before Charleston with quiet yet com- 
mendable enthusiasm, and from the day his I'egiment broke ground for the 
first fort on Folly Island, to the evening the missile of death met him in Fort 
Gregg, he exhibited a determination of purpose, remarked by many and sur- 
passed by none. 

The ranking officer in the line, he was frequently called to command the 
regiment, and his official ability was such, that his fellow officers looked 
anxiously forward to the time when promotion should be granted him as a 
meritorious reward, but in this, they are only too sadly disappointed. On the 
evening of the 23d iust, just as he was transmitting his instructions to the 
officer who relieved him of his command in Fort Gregg, a shell from Fort 
Moultrie burst among his men, killing several, and so wounding him in the 
side, that he soon died. He was conscious to the last, and apparently 
resigned to his sad fate. 

As an officer, Capt. Woodruff had an enviable reputation: ever ready for 
duty, he was never known to murmur, or question the propriety of an order, 
however laborious or dangerous the duty it demanded. Socially, he was a 
man admired by all who knew him, and in his friendship he was honest and 
sincere. He has fallen in the midday of his manhood, and in the very fort 
from which was fired the first rebel gun at Fort Sumter, the vibrations of 
which so thrilled with energy the great northern heart. He has fallen, but he 
fell in defence of a principle deeply enshrined in every loyal breast, and for the 
unity and perpetuity of a country that shall gladly honor her gallant dead. 

Let the virtues of the deceased be emulated by his bereaved comrades who 
survive him, and by whom his memory will doubtless be perpetuated with a 
pleasing sadness. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 127 



As a tokeu of respect to the fallen brave, it is hereby ordered that the 
usual badge of raourniog be worn by the officers of this regiment for the 
period of thirty days. 

By command of 0. L. Mann, 

Lieut. Col. Commanding Regt. 

S. S. Brucker, 1st Lieut, and A. Adjt. 



At a meeting of the officers of the 39th Regt. 111. Volunteers, called for the 
purpose of expressing the deep regret felt in the loss of a brother officer and 
friend, the following resolutions were approved and adopted: 

Whereas, On the night of Sept. 23, 1863, Capt. Joseph WoodrufiF, of Co. 
K, 39th Regt. 111. Volunteers, while on duty as officer in command at Fort 
Gregg, and when about to be relieved from the same, was wounded by a shell 
thrown from Fort Moultrie, which carried away a large portion of his right 
side, causing bis death in a short time afterwards; therefore, 

Resolved, That, while we recognize the hand of God in all things, we can 
but mourn the loss of our brother officer, and one of our country's noble de- 
fenders; and, while we so deeply regret the violent death which snatched from 
us one whose every act endeared him to all, whose loyalty, patriotism and 
l)ravery proclaimed him a true man and soldier, we cannot but feel that our 
loss is his gain, and that he has left a world of suffering and gone to join that 
band of noble patriots who have fallen before, and with him in their country's 
defence. 

Resolved, That we tender our heartfelt sympathies to the family and friends 
in this their sad bereavement of a kind husband and generous companion, and 
trust that they may find consolation in the fact, that he fell while at his post 
and in the discharge of his duty, and that in dying he evinced, while sensible, 
that spirit of resignation which bespeaks the faith of a Christian. 

0. L. Mann, Lieut. Col. Commanding, ■\ 
Chas. M. Clark, Surgeon, ( 



Committee. 
C. J. Wilder, Lieut. Co. H, 



L. A. Baker, Capt. Co. A, /" 



128 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT BUCK. 

Lieut. Henry A. Buck, only son of Allen and Amanda 
Buck, was born at Ypsilanti, Mich., on the 26th of June, 1837. 
From a child he was noted for his fearlessness and bravery, 
and a passionate love for truth and for the right was ever a 
distino-uishino; feature of his character. His behavior towards 
parents and sisters was that of a dutiful son and a kind, affec- 
tionate brother, as he grew up one of the truly noble, well 
educated and promising young men of Michigan. 

In 1854, he entered the University of Michigan as a student, 
graduating in 1858. He then entered upon the study of law 
in the office of Messrs. Norris and Ninde, Ypsilanti ; was ad- 
mitted to the bar, and commenced the practice of his profession 
in the city of Grand Rapids with H. P. Yale. In June, 1861, 
he returned to the University, and received the degree of A. M. 
In November of the same year, Avhile on business in Chicago, 
he enlisted as Orderly Sergeant in Company K, 51st Regiment 
Illinois Volunteers. This step he announces in a letter to his 
friends, where he says : 

On very careful reflection, thcr conclusion is forced upon me, that lionor and 
duty both call for a response to my suffering country's despairing cry to 
take up arms in her defence. Do not let this determination wound your feel- 
ings. I consider it a duty, and I know you will feel prouder of me when I return. 

The regiment remained at Camp Douglas imtil the 14th of 
February, 1862, when it went to Cairo and occupied barracks 
at Camp McClernand, removing in a few days to Camp Cullom, 
Ky. From thence to Bird's Point, Mo., marching through 
Houghsville, Bertrand and Sykestown, encamping tAvo miles 
from New Madrid. On the morning of the 13th of March they 
were drawn up in line of battle ; an engagement was going on 
between the land batteries on one side and the rebel batteries 
and gunboats on the other. A battery Avas soon planted to 
bear upon their gunboats, and, after sharp skirmishing, suc- 
ceeded in driving in the enemy's pickets. That night the rebels 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 129 

were compelled to leave New Madrid in great haste. On the 
7th of April, they took transports, and landed in Kentucky at 
noon, marching off through the fields and woods; again crossing 
the line into Tennessee, following-up about 2000 rebels, halting 
a mile from Tiptonville, an enemj^'s camp, and taking about 40 
prisoners on the route. 

After the evacuation of Island No. 10, on the 8th of April, 
when Gen. McKoon and 3000 rebels surrendered to Gen. Paine, 
Co. K was detailed to guard a boat load of prisoners to New 
Madrid. Soon after, they were ordered to Farmington, Miss., 
and participated in the engagement there. While here, the 
regiment was made the recipient of an elegant stand of colors, 
presented by citizens of Chicago. 

On the 15th of June, Sergt. Buck was appointed by the Col. 
as Acting 1st Lieutenant, which position he filled until the 
battle of Stone River. During the summer months, they were 
occupied in guarding different points in Tennessee and Northern 
Alabama. On the 5th of September, they were ordered to 
Nashville : all the country south of it and east of Corinth was 
to be evacuated. After weary days of hard marching and some 
severe conflicts with the enemy, they reached the city on the 
16th. At this time there had been no communication, either 
by telegraph, railroad, river, or otherwise, between Nashville 
and the North for several weeks. The regiment remained here 
until marchina: orders were issued to the different columns on 
the 26th of December. The entire army of Gen. Rosecrans 
was then in motion. 

Soon after followed the memorable battle of Stone River. 
On the morning of the first day's fight, Lieutenant Buck was 
wounded in the left side by a minie ball — his diary then saving 
his life. Undaunted, he remained at his post until evening, 
when he was obliged to be carried from the field to the hospital. 
In two weeks after he reported for duty, and was placed in 
command of the company. Headquarters were established at 
Murfreesboro on Monday, the 5th of January, 1863. Taking 
up a position in front of the town, the exhausted army settled 
down into the quiet of camp life. On the 23d of June, Gen. 
Rosecrans issued orders for an advance in force against the 



130 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

enemy. To Gen. McCook's Corps (the 51st being attached) 
the part of making the first advance was assigned. Early on 
the 24th they started out on the Shelbyville Pike, and on the 
9th of July their brigade climbed the Cumberland Mountains 
for five weary miles, then marched two miles on the sandy sum- 
mit to the " University of the South," * and camped. In this 
beautiful spot they remained until August, then moved to 
Bridgeport, Ala. 

On the 6th of September, Lieut. Buck WTites : 

We are now in Lookout Valley, on the banks of Lookout Creek, at the 
foot of Lookout Mountain. Now " lookout," Bragg, for Rosy is after you. 

This was the last letter received from him. In a few days 
the impending battle between Rosecrans and Bragg took place. 
At Chickamauga, on the afternoon of the 19th of September, 
Lieut. Buck fell while bravely leading his company to what 
proved his own and nearly their whole destruction. He was 
killed instantly, being shot in the head, and fell without 
utterino; a word. 

He died not only respected but beloved by both officers and 
men. Col. Raymond, when speaking of his death to a friend, 
said — "I have lost my best officer." His company, of which 
only 8 out of 43 remained after the conflict, agree in saying a 
purer man — a more brave and gallant officer, never lived. His 
letters, while with the regiment, all breathe a pure Christian 
spirit, and express the noblest conceptions of life and duty. 
He was a member of the Presbyterian Church of his native 
place, and never sullied his profession amid the temptations of 
military life, being careful to honor the cause of religion by a 
faithful attendance upon its public service whenever an oppor- 
tunity occurred. No consideration could induce him to resign 
his commission. In answer to urgent wishes to return home, 
he says : 

I have sworn to serve my country honestly and faithfully, and as long as 
God spares my life, I must and will fulfil my obligations. 

He gave to his country continued service for nearly two years, 

* An Institution projected by the Episcopal Church of the South, the corner-stone only 
of which was laid. The war piit a stop to its further progress. 



MARTYllS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 131 

being off duty not more than three or four weeks in that time, 
and never taking a furlough to visit friends. " A soklier (he 
writes at one time) has no business away from his command, if 
there is an enemy to meet." All his strength and energies were 
given for his country's salvation, and he fell a martyr to liberty. 
Although his remains lie in the soil of Georgia, the name of 
Lieut. Buck shall live in the holiest remembrances of his friends 
and appear with lustre on the heroic escutcheon of the Prairie 
State. 



THE SAMSON FAMILY. 

Andrew F., aged 23, Edwin S., aged 21, and Hamilton 
Samson, aged 19 years, enlisted in Company H, 77th Regiment 
Illinois Volunteers, in August, 1862. They participated in the 
skirmishing or battle under Gen. Sherman, the following winter, 
at Vicksburg. Edwin was at the battle of Arkansas Post, and 
Andrew was at the siege and fall of the Mississippi stronghold 
— Vicksburg. 

Hamilton died of disease at Young's Point, Feb. 4, 1863 ; 
Edwin at Milliken's Bend, March 25, 1863, and Andrew at 
Vicksburg, after its capture. 

Their father, Kev. H. Sampson, of Minonk, Woodford co., 
thus closes the very brief record of his sons : " They were all 
the children we had, and we gave them to the Lord and our 
country." 



132 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



MAJOR BUSHNELL. 

Maj, Douglas R. Bushnell, son of Francis W. and Louisa 
Bushnell, was born in Norwich, Conn., June 17, 1824, where 
the first years of his life were spent, and where he received a 
thorough education and adopted the profession of civil engineer, 
in which capacity he was connected with the railroads in the 
vicinity of his native place.*. 

In 1845, he removed to New Hampshire, and still following 
his profession, was employed on many of the railroads in that 
and the adjoining State of Vermont. 

At Highgate, Vt., on the 16th of September, 1849, he was 
married to Miss Emily J. Edson, an intelligent and accomplished 
lady, in whose refined taste and congenial society he found the 
counterpart of his own cultivated mind ; and he participated in 
i^nusual domestic happiness until duty called him to offer even 
this precious boon upon the altar of his country. 

In the fall of 1850, falling in with the tide of emigration 
which was then wending its way toward the fertile prairies of 
the Great West, he came to Illinois, and located at Rockford, 
to which place he removed his family tlie year following. After 
a three years residence there, he in the meantime being con- 
nected with the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, he lo- 
cated his family in Sterling. While liere, he was prominently 
connected, as engineer, with the Dixon Air Line Railroad, and 
as chief engineer, superintended the construction of one of the 
main roads in the northern part of Iowa, running westward, 
and also the Sycamore branch of the Galena and Chicago Union 
Railroad. When the Sterling and Rock Island road was pro- 
jected, he was called to the position of chief engineer, and most 
successfully lie performed his duties. 

In the spring of 1861, when the first call was made for troops 
to maintain our integrity as a nation, and to repel the treason- 
able assaults of Southern disunionists upon our glorious inherit- 
ance of unity and liberty. Major Bushnell was among the first 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



to respond. Prompted by a sense of duty to his country, and 
impelled by the true spirit of patriotism, he added his name to 
the muster-roll of Honor, and went forth to battle for the Right 
— to lend the aid of a true heart, an intelligent mind, and a 
strong arm, in the defence of his country's institutions. 

At Sterling, scores of resolute men, among whom were the 
most intelligent, wealthy and influential of her citizens, left 
their counters, their workshops, their offices, and their farms, 
to volunteer for the defence of the dear old flag, and immedi- 
ately commenced drilling for the service. 

They expected no light work, and raised no questions of 
bounty or pay. They only knew their country was in danger, 
and their bosoms burned to avenge her wrongs. Such were the 
heroes of the loth Illinois Infantry, and such were the men of 
Co. B. To be chosen leader of these brave sons of Sterling, 
was an honor not to be lightly esteemed, and in electing D. R. 
Bushnell for their Captain, they manifested their appreciation 
of his ability, experience, and many virtues. The company 
was presented with a beautiful flag by the citizens, with appro- 
priate ceremonies ; and with an afi"ectionate adieu to his three 
lovely children, and a tender "fareAvell" to the brave woman, 
who bid him " God speed" in this glorious cause, Capt. Bush- 
nell hastened to join the regiment in camp at Dixon. 

The early volunteers having been accustomed to civil liberty, 
were not prepared to endure the restraints of military duty, 
and to some, Capt. Bushnell's strict and thorough discipline 
seemed severe ; but in a short time, they learned to prize him 
all the more for this qualification. 

From Dixon, the regiment was ordered to Rolla, Mo., and 
there, during the summer of 1861, Col. Wyman was in com- 
mand, and Capt. Bushnell, acting Major. At the request of 
Gen. Totten, who was personally acquainted with his abilities 
as an engineer, he was put in charge of the construction of a 
fort at that place, which was completed under his supervision, 
and afterwards pronounced one of the strongest and most com- 
plete of its size in the United States. It was proposed to name 
it after its scientific constructor, but Capt. Bushnell, with his 
characteristic modesty, declined the honor and gave the pref- 



134 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

erence to his superior officer, and it is now called " Fort 
Wyman." 

In March, 1862, the regiment joined Gen, Curtis' army at 
Pea Ridge, and in all their toilsome marches through southern 
Missouri and Arkansas, Capt. Bushnell was acting Major, and 
by his sagacity and uniform sympathy with the wearied hut 
uncomplaining soldiers, won the confidence and affection of 
officers and men. After the arrival at Helena on the 14th of 
July, he was frequently put in command of expeditions into the 
surrounding country. In one of these, he was sent to the St. 
Francis River, with a detachment of the 13th Illinois and 14th 
Iowa, and from the plantations of Generals Pillow and Brown, 
he brought away a large quantity of corn and quite a number 
of cattle. In Gen. Hovey's expedition to the Coldwater and 
Tallahatchie Rivers, Capt. B. had command of 200 of the 13th; 
and, after a successful raid in the enemy's country, and destroy- 
ing the railroad at Oakland Station, they returned to Helena, 
where they remained until the 22d of December. The regiment 
was then put under the command of Gen. Sherman, in Gen. 
Blair's brigade, and ordered immediately to Vicksburg. After 
arrival there, the " Old 13th" was placed in the advance, and 
was the first Illinois regiment to assault the enemy's works. In 
all the engagements at Vicksburg previous to December 29th, 
Capt. Bushnell led his own brave company of Sterling boys ; 
but upon the fall of Col. Wyman, he was promoted to Major of 
the regiment. 

On the 29th occurred the memorable charge upon the rebel 
riflepits at the foot of Walnut Hills, at Chickasaw Bayou, in 
which the 13th lost 30 killed and over 100 wounded. Major 
Bushnell highly distinguished himself for coolness and courage, 
by advancing within a few rods of the enemy's works, under a 
fire that swept the ground on which he stood. 

On the 10th and 11th of January, 1863, we find him display- 
ino- the same heroic devotion at the assault and takino- of Ar- 
kansas Post. After this, his engineering abilities were again 
called into requisition during the seventy-five days the regiment 
was at Young's Point, digging canals, building levees, and 
erecting fortifications to operate against Vicksburg. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 135 

In Gen. Steele's raid upon Deer Creek in April, in the 
march upon Grand Gulf and Jackson in May, and in the ter- 
rific assaults upon Vicksburg in June and July, Major Bushnell 
was ever at his post — shrinking from no toil, privation or 
danger to which the regiment Avas exposed. In Gen. Sher- 
man's operations against Johnston, after the fall of Vicksburg, 
Major Bushnell acted Lieut. Col. until they returned to their 
summer quarters, August 13th, 1863. 

Thus, from a modest, retiring citizen, he had changed to an 
undaunted, war-begrimed hero. His fine form had lost none of 
its gentlemanly bearing ; but the realities of cruel war had 
stamped upon his face a sternness which was unnatural, but 
Avhich befitted the soldier. The iron had entered his soul, and 
his dark, piercing eye had too often looked upon deatli, to 
droop beneath the gaze of any man, or quail before any form 
of danger ; yet, in the recesses of his heart, there was the same 
aifectionate tenderness, Avhich had so endeared him to his family 
and friends. He could still weep over the sufferings and trials 
of his companions, and a simple flower would awaken all the 
fond recollections of a far-off, peaceful home. 

He had risen high in the estimation of his superior officers, 
and had he been as ambitious for office as he was to be useful, 
he misht have arrived at greater distinction, but would have 
been less a hero. His only desire was to discharge faithfully 
his duty to his country, and then return to the bosom of his 
family ; and now, as he drew near his last battle, and the 
images of his absent loved ones rise before him, his affectionate 
letters to them breathe more earnestly this longing desire. In 
one of these he says : 

I pray God, at the end of my service, I may be restored to my beloved 
family in safety, but more especially I pray, that the cause in tchich I have 
staked my life and my honor may succeed. 

Never since the night at Gethsemane was that prayer, " Not 
my will, but Thine, be done," more fervently uttered. 

He had passed safely through the storm of shot and shell in 
the fierce contests of Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, 
on the 24th and 25th of November, and was now hopeful that 
he should live to see the end — to see the rebellion crushed, and 



136 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

to sec liis country again united and happy ; but the God of 
Battles had ordered it otherwise. 

On the morning of the 27th, the 13th Illinois Infantry held 
the extreme right before Ringgold, and was ordered by General 
Osterhaus to advance rapidly over an open field, which was 
covered with shells, canister and bullets, like hail, to a few 
houses in front, from which they might drive off the artillery- 
men of the enemy. This they accomplished in magnificent 
style, and gained the position, which they held, in spite of the 
murderous fire from the iroro-e in front and the hillside on the 
rio-ht. 

Gen. Osterhaus, in his report of this battle, says : 

The 13th Illinois remained, undauntetlly keeping up a vehement fire. These 
struggles, during which so many deeds of bravery were exhibited, lasted from 9 
a.m. to 1 p.m., our infantry fighting against the combined forces of the enemy. 

The artillery coming up, the rebels were soon driven from the 
gorge, and the victory won. But the glad shouts of triumph 
which rent the air, fell unheeded u|)on the ear of the gallant 
Major Bushnell. He had given his life this day as a sacrifice 
for his country's honor, and a more patriotic or pure heart was 
never laid upon her altar. While assisting some of his men to 
place a rail in front of them for their protection, a musket ball 
came crashing through, and, striking him in the left temple, 
passed into the brain and killed him instantly. 

Lieut. Col. Partridge communicated the sad intelligence to 
Mrs. Bushnell, in the following letter : 

Chattanooga, Tenn., Nov. 30th, 18G3. 

My Dear Madam: The painful duty has devolved upon me, as the com- 
manding oCQeer of the 13th Regt. 111. Vols., of sending to you the last remains 
of your precious husband. The sad news has already been broken to you, I 
am informed, by sympathizing friends. The 13th, officers and men, sympathize 
heartily with his bereaved family. He died in defence of the cherished insti- 
tutions of his country. He died in his place, as a brave and gallant soldier 
should; and although, when you think of the desolate condition to which you 
and yours are reduced by his untimely fate, the thought may give you no 
present comfort, believe me, that when you relate to your children, in after 
years, the fate of their lamented parent, the fact that he was stricken in his 
place on the field of battle, struggling with the old 13th to put down this 
accursed rebellion, will be full of comforting circumstances. 

I remain yours to command, Fred'k W. Partridge. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 137 

Lieut. Joseph Patterson, of Co. B, 13th Illinois, in a letter to 
his father, whose residence is near that of the late Major Bush- 
nell, says : 

We mourn exceedingly the deatli of our oallaut Major, and sympathize 
deejjly witli his bereaved family. * * * j feel deeply for Mrs. Bushnell 
and her little, fatherless children. It will tend to alleviate her distress to 
know that her husband fell, fighting in defence of his bleeding country. 
The Major was a courteous gentleman — a true patriot, and, as an officer, 
unequalled in the regiment. 

The body was embalmed and sent home in charge of Sergt. 
Harvey, accompanied by a brother of the deceased, the Rev. 
F. H. Bushnell, of Louisville, Ky. At Chicago it was met by 
a deputation of the citizens of Sterling, by whom it was escorted 
to that city, where, on its arrival, it was taken in charge by the 
Masonic fraternity. 

At the funeral, the Rev. Mr, Wilkinson, of Chicago, delivered 
an eloquent address, from which the following is an extract : 

We are met together here to pay the last sad honors to the remains of our 
laniejited fi-iend and fellow-townsman — the nol)le gentleman, the brave soldier, 
the gallant officer — Major Douglas R. Bushnell; to mingle our tears with 
those of his bereaved family, and to give the best sympathies of our hearts as 
an offering of love to them, and a tribute of honor to the departed. It were 
sad enough to do this under any circumstances. Had he been gathered to 
his fathers in a good old age, like a shock of corn fully ripe, having done his 
work, and written his history io the records of your material prosperity and 
social progress, even then we must have laid him to rest with weeping hearts 
and eyes. But not thus has his end come. In the prime of life, in the midst 
of his usefulness, the full strength of his manhood fitting him for greater efforts, 
and the niaturer development of his mental powers marking him for more suc- 
cessful achievements — he is gone; another victim of this accursed rebellion, 
another sacrifice to the bloody demon of secession, another jewel added to the 
countless price that loyalty is paying for the suppression of Southern treason 
— that patriotism is offering ibr the preservation of our beloved country. On 
the field of battle, where the shot fell fastest, and the iron storm raged the 
sorest, there, at the post of duty, our brother met the summons of the destroy- 
ing angel, and laid down his sword forever. We moui-n his loss. We sorrow 
for the afflictions of his bereaved friends. We bow in humble subnn'ssion to 
the Providence that has permitted this afflictive dispensation. 

While thus " weeping with those who weep," it is my privilege to pay my 
feeble tribute to his memory. 

As a citizen, he is known to you all as upright, honorable, courteous and 
9 



138 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

true. No taint of crime dims his Ijriglit escutcheon — no breath of calumny 
dare sully his fiiir fiitiic. All knew him to respect, admire, and love. 

As a soldier, it is the umuiinious tcstimdiiy of fellow ofiRcers and of his men, 
that he was ever faithful in duty, ever firm, yet gentle, in discipline, true in his 
friendships, and unfaltering in his courage. Death found him, where he might 
have found him at any moment of his career as a soldier — at his post. 

From the cliurcli the hody was taken to the cemetery, accom- 
panied by the martial band and the Masonic lodges of Sterling 
and Dixon, and followed by a large concourse of sympathizing 
citizens. Houses of business were closed, and flags, draped 
in mourning, waved solemnly as the procession moved along. 
At the grave, the impressive burial service of the Masons 
was read, and the mourned dead was lowered to his last earthly 
home, enshrouded in the stars and stripes, beneath whose folds 
he received the summons Avhich called him to another world. 

" Aye, leave the stripes and stars 
Above bira, with the precious cap and Hash, 
The mute rneiueiiloes of the battle's crash. 
And of a hero's shears. 

A hero heart is still 
And eyes are sealed, and loving lips are mute 
AVhich tiore ou earth the spirit's golden fruit. 

But peace! it was God's will." 



CORPORAL ORMSBY. 

Corp. Jesse Harrison Ormsby, son of John Ormsby, en- 
listed at Chicago, on the 30th of July, 18C1,, in Co. I, 42d 
Regiment Illinois Volunteers. He went from there to Benton 
Barracks, St. Louis, Mo., and from thence to Jefferson City ; 
thence to Springfield, and other places in that State — some- 
times guardino; wagon trains, and almost the whole of the time 
on the move, until they got to Tipton, where he was taken with 
the measles. He was doing well, but on removing him from his 
tent to the hospital, he sufl'ered a relapse, and died very sud- 
denly on the 18th of December, 1861, in the twenty-third year 
of his acre. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 139 



CAPTAIN SHEPLEY. 

Capt. Charles H. Shepley, eldest son of James C. and 
Mary S. Shepley, Avas born in Tunbridge, Vermont, on the 
10th of February, 1841. When he was but seven years old, 
his parents removed from Tunbridge to Bradford, and from 
thence, in 1854, to Chicago. 

At an early age, the subject of this sketch evinced a lively 
interest in military affairs, and in numerous instances gave his 
friends reason to suppose that whenever a fitting opportunity 
offered itself, he would exchange the avocations of a citizen for 
the honors, duties and dangers of a soldier's life. 

In 1856, young Shepley joined Col. Scott's National Guard 
Cadets — afterwards better known as the Zouave Cadets — and 
continued an active member until that organization was dis- 
banded, being one of the company on their famous tour to the 
principal eastern cities, in the summer of 1856, when their 
splendid drill exercises excited the enthusiastic admiration of 
countless thousands. 

When, in the spring of 1861, the rebellion culminated in the 
bombardment and capture of Fort Sumter — by a traitorous 
faction Avho had taken up arms against a government which 
had never wronged them — then the heart of young Shepley 
became fired with a holy ambition to give his services, and if 
need be his life, to his dearly loved country. Having obtained 
the consent of his parents to enlist, he at once accepted an 
offer to become the 2d Lieutenant of Co. K, in what afterwards 
became the 19th Regiment Illinois Volunteers. On the 21st 
of April — only one week after the fall of Sumter — Lieutenant 
Shepley bade adieu to his parents and friends at home, and 
went with his company to Cairo, where he remained about one 
month, when they were ordered to Springfield. From thence 
they came to Chicago, and acted as escort on the occasion of 
the funeral of the late Hon. Stephen A. Douglas. In a few 
days after this event, Co. K and several other companies were 



140 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

organized into a regiment, and designated as the 19tli Illinois 
— Colonel John B. Turchin, commanding. 

Soon after its organization, the 19th was sent into Missouri. 
It was not long after leaving Chicago before the subject of this 
sketch was promoted to the 1st Lieutenancy of his company. 
Early in the fall, the regiment, in accordance with an order 
from headquarters, started for Washington, but on the way, 
a sad railroad casualty occurred in crossing a bridge over the 
Wabash river, which quenched the life of many a gallant 
soldier, and brought sorrow to many a desolated family circle. 
Immediately after this catastrophe, the regiment went to Cin- 
cinnati, and from thence was sent into Kentucky. On the 
26th of October, while at Elizabethtown, in that State, Lieut. 
Shepley was chosen Captain of Co. I — a position for which his 
excellent personal qualities, combined with his superior skill in 
military science, rendered him eminently qualified ; for, though 
not yet twenty-one years of age, Capt, Shepley, by his inde- 
fatigable industry in the improvement of all his opportunities, 
had acquired a practical knowledge of military tactics superior 
to that which most officers of riper age are apt to possess after 
years of active service. 

On the 10th of February, 1862, while the regiment was 
quartered at Bowling Green, Ky., Capt. Shepley was made the 
recipient of an elegant sword, sash and belt, from the members 
of his company, as a token of their high esteem for their gallant 
commander and noble-hearted brother in arms. This splendid 
gift was accompanied with a brief presentation speech by Pri- 
vate McDowell, to which Capt. Shepley happily and feelingly 
responded. 

While the 19th Regiment was stationed at Murfreesboro, 
Tenn., Capt. Shepley met Avith an accident which resulted in 
his death two days afterwards. On the 21st of March, while 
quietly engaged in loading his pistol, the Aveapon suddenly 
discharged itself, the ball passing into and nearly through his 
body, producing a fatal wound. He lingered till early on the 
morning of the 23d, Avhen, despite all the surgical skill and 
kindly attentions put forth in his behalf, Capt. Shepley was 
compelled to yield up his young life while bright hopes and 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 141 

Avell-merited honors were clustering around liim. He had often 
expressed to liis fellow soldiers a desire that if he must lose his 
life in the war, it might be his privilege to die on the battle- 
field, rather than in camp or on picket duty. But that wish 
was not to be gratified ; and yet those best acquainted with 
him know that he died none the less a hero than if his life had 
been taken by the hand of the enemy amid the carnage of 
battle. 

His loss was deeply felt by his company and regiment, for 
none knew him who did not respect him for his noble, manly 
virtues, and more than ordinary talents, while those who were 
his intimate friends, loved him as a brother. Generous, truth- 
ful, ambitious to acquire honorable distinction in his chosen 
profession of a soldier, but even more ambitious to serve his 
country in her time of peril ; with a high order of talent, com- 
bined with a firm, high-toned sense of moral rectitude, which 
made him scorn to do a wrong act, whether in the army or the 
walks of civil life, — Capt. Shepley Avas a model whose example 
young men might follow with safety to themselves and benefit 
to society. 

Immediately after his demise, the remains of Capt. Shepley 
were placed in a handsome metallic coffin, generously procured 
by the regiment, and transmitted to Chicago for interment. 
On Tuesday, April 3d, the funeral obsequies took place. The 
remains of the young and gifted officer were followed from the 
residence of his parents to Trinity Church, by a large procession 
of citizens, preceded by a numerous and an imposing military 
escort. At the church, the services — conducted by the Rev. 
Dr. Pratt — were of the most solemn character, and nearly 
every one of that vast assemblage, whether citizen or soldier, 
wept as those weep who mourn the death of a beloved friend. 
The services concluded, all that was mortal of this estimable 
young officer was borne away to a quiet resting-place in Rosehill 
Cemetery, which is now overshadowed by a monumental column. 

Thus early in life, and early in the war, perished Captain 
Charles H. Shepley, who, at the hour of his death, was aged 
but twenty-one years, one month and thirteen days. 



142 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL WEBB. 

Among the patriotic and brave men who have fallen victims 
to this unholy rebellion, none have met a more untimely fate 
than Lieut. Col. Lysander R. Webb, of the 77th Illinois In- 
fantry. Beloved by an unusually large circle of friends, a fine 
speaker, a ready and vigorous writer, had he lived, bright 
honors awaited him. We bewail the sacrifice. 

Col. Webb was born at Pittsfield, Mass., December 30, 1833, 
and being early left an orphan, went to reside with his guar- 
dian, Hon. William Shepard of Chester. When of suitable age 
he entered Yale College, but his protector dying a year or 
two after, he quitted the college before graduation and became 
an assistant editor on the Springfield (Mass.) Repuhlican. In 
1857, he came to Illinois, where he was connected editorially 
with the Waukegan G-azette, and, in the following year, assumed 
a similar position on the Peoria Daily Transcript. In 1859, 
he commenced the study of the law ; in 1860, was admitted to 
the bar, and continued in the practice of his profession until 
the summer of 1862. At .that time, in response to the call for 
300,000 volunteers, he raised a company, which, on the organi- 
zation of the 77th Regiment, became attached to it as Co. E, 
and its Captain promoted to the Lieut. Colonelcy. Soon after, 
the regiment was ordered to Cincinnati, and from there joined 
in Gen. Buell's unsuccessful pursuit of Bragg. From that time 
until the fall of 1863 they were constantly on the move. From 
December 27th until January 1st, 1863, they took part in Gen. 
Sherman's attack on Vicksburg ; January lltli, they were at 
Arkansas Post, where they lost fifty men in killed and wounded ; 
May 1st, at Port Gibson ; a few days after, at Champion Hills 
and Black River Bridge ; at Gen. Grant's long siege and final 
capture of Vicksburg ; and in July, at the siege of Jackson, 
Miss. 

During the winter of 1863-4, Col. Webb was detailed for the 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 143 

important post of Commandant of the Convalescent Camp of the 
13th Army Corps, located at New Orleans. This responsible and 
arduous duty he conducted with great credit to himself and to 
the entire satisfaction of his superior officers, who only consented 
to relieve him that he might take charge of his regiment after 
repeated requests on his part. In March, he joined the 77th 
at Berwick Bay, and, after leading them in the long march up 
Red River, appeared at their head for the last time at the dis- 
astrous buttle of Sabine Cross Roads, on the 8th of April, 1864. 
While gallantly cheering on his men, he was shot by a bullet, 
which pierced his head. Deprived of their leader, the noble 
77th suifered fearfully, and of the 400 men who went into the 
struggle, but 153 remained to tell the talc. 

Col. Webb was a staunch and earnest Republican, and boldly 
stood by his principles when to do so was a sure road to un- 
popularity. He was heart and soul with the administration in 
every'eiSbrt to maintain the union and put down the rebellion, 
and was a powerful advocate of all those measures. 

In 1858, he married Virginia, eldest daughter of Charles 
Ballance, Esq., of Peoria, Avho is left to mourn the loss of her 
brave and gallant husband, but not alone — the memory of such 
men lingers in the hearts of a grateful country, and his life will 
be measured by deeds, not years. « 

The following extracts have been made from the many letters 
written by Col. Webb to his friends. He vividly portrays the 
events passing under his review ; and the last one he was per- 
mitted to write, displays a feeling which entitles him to honor 
and his memory to unfading recollection. 

On board Steamer "Argyle," i 
Near Yicksburg, Miss., Dec. 25, 1862. \ 

I have just read the private circular from President Lincoln, who says the 
Mississippi viust be opened. The rebels, to the number of 120,000, are con- 
centrated at Vicksburg, strongly fortified, and a great battle must undoubtedly 
occur. To-morrow we sail up the Yazoo River to a rebel fort, sixty miles up, 
take it, unite with Grant, and march on Vicksburg. There are tears in my 
eyes as I write this letter, and reflect that it may be the last you will receive 
from me. Believe me, however, in view of the good I hope to do for our 
wretched country, there are no regrets in view of danger. 



144 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



(After Sherman's attack on Vicksburg.) 

Milliken's Bend, Jan. 2, 1863. 

Since my last letter to you important events have been going on in this 
commancl. vSunday morning last, our division landed twelve miles from the 
mouth of Yazoo River, and immediately disembarked. The other three 
divisions of the army had disembarked before us. The 1st brigade started, 
and we followed, over a muddy road, leading through a densely-wooded bot- 
tom in the direction of Vicksburg. After marching about four miles we 
heard the action commencing on our extreme left, and it soon became general 
along the whole line of the last three divisions. Our division halted for about 
a quarter of an hour, when an order came for our regiment to advance and 
drive in the enemy's skirmishers on the right. As we filed past the other 
regiments, the only words spoken were: " What regiment?" "77th Illinois," 
our boys would answer proudly, conscious that the advance given us was a 
mark of honor. * * * * Some eleven or twelve rebels were killed in 
this skirmish — not one of our men either killed or wounded, though two or 
three had holes shot in their clothes. I attribute our good fortune to the 
superiority of our arms. Towards night, word came for us to contract our 
line and fall back. We did so, and not daring to make fires, lay upon our 
arms all night. I could hear the town clock in Vicksburg strike the passing 
hours, and the cars rattle all night long. * * * * Wednesday and 
Thursday were quiet days along the whole line. It was evident our force was 
insufficient to take the place, and neither Banks nor Grant could be heard 
from. Meantime, the rebels were hurrying in reinforcements, and studying 
mischief of some sort. Our brigade built a long line of rude but strong forti- 
fications, and determined to " die in the last ditch." Thursday night, however, 
about midnight, the whole aritiy commenced a noiseless retreat to the boats- 
We have fallen back to Milliken's Bend, and thus far, the movement is an 
acknowledged failure. What will be done next remains to be seen. McCler- 
nand, it is said, supersedes Sherman in the command. If so, he will either 
take Vicksburg or lose half of his forces in the attempt. The place is strongly 
fortified, and must be got, if at all, by a large force and by desperate fighting- 



Field of Battle, Post of Arkansas, Jan. 13, 1863. 

I have escaped unhurt. We have had a fine battle, and have won a most 
gratifying victory. 7000 prisoners, 8000 stand of excellent arms, and 20 
cannon, are its fruits, besides an immense quantity of ammunition, commissary 
and quartermaster stores. The fight opened Sunday noon, and lasted four or 
five hours. Such a thunder of cannon and roll of artillery have seldom been 
heard in any battle. Fort Hindman, the captured stronghold, is a small but 
exceedingly strong fort, surrounded by rifle-pits, abattis, and other means of 
defence. Our regiment has won, by its gallantry, distinguished honors. When 
the white flag was raised by the rebels, our flag-bearer being wounded, Major 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 




Hotchkiss seized the regimental flag and charged through the ditch, wliile I 
followed him. I assisted him up the ramparts, and climbed up after him. I 
do not think I ever .shouted so loud in my life as when we seized the .stuff and 
waved the flag of the 77th over those rebel fortifications. The whole regi- 
ment was speedily in.side the fort, and as a mark of honor, Gen. Morgan placed 
us in command of the fort and in charge of the prisoners. 



Again, at Millikcn's Bend, April 9, 1863, he writes : 

To-dav, our division was reviewed by Gen. Grant. There are no marching 
orders as yet, though large movements are in progress. You will soon hear 
of a ditch dug five miles below our camp, not yet made public, and not known 
to the enemy. The Lake Providence ditch, Yazoo Pass expedition, etc., are, 
in iny opinion, only so many blinds to mislead the rebels. I shall be much 
disappointed if we are not soon in the rear and on the flanks of A^ickslturg, 
wnth the enemy comparatively cooped up and at our mercy. Do not be dis- 
couraged about our success, or apparent want of success, rather. We shall 
have Ficksburg. 



Natchitoches, April 5, 1864. 

It is not probable now that I shall have any opportunity of seeing you 
until the war is over, for it is not my present intention, health permitting, to 
leave the army for the North again until I can leave it for good. Were it 
consistent with my duty, I should resign my conuuission this fall, upon the 
expiration of two years of service. It would be pleasant to be relieved of 
the toil, the hardships and dangers of my present life, and return once more 
to the comforts and joys of home and friends; but I honestly would feel 
ashamed to do so. 

Many things in the management of the war disgust me — as they must dis- 
gust everybody — but my heart swells and my blood boils when 1 think of the 
terrible ruin which the Vandal hordes of treason are still attempting to 
accomplish. The complete overthrow of this Rebellion, mighty as it is, must 
be accomplished at any and every sacrifice. There must be no idle repining 
over this " cruel war." We must w^ork, and sacrifice, and suffer, looking to 
victories alone, at any cost of precious human blood, as the paths to honor, 
peace and happiness. 

No, I cannot resign. I must remain here at the post of honor, and 
danger, and duty — here with those comrades in arms, endeared to me by 
common impulses of enthusiastic patriotism, common trials iu our country's 
cause, and common dangers in the fierce hour of battle. Do not smile at 
these, perhaps, too rhapsodic words. Remember that I feel what I say. 



146 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL CHANDLER. 

The subject of this sketch, Lieut. Col. George W. Chandler, 
one of the bravest, most efficient and humane of the many ac- 
complished officers Illinois has sent to the field to aid in crushing 
out the great " Southern Rebellion." was born in the parish of 
St. Armand East, Missisquoi county, Canada East, August 
27th, 1832, 

His grandfather, Daniel Chandler, was from Hartford, Con- 
necticut, and had the honor of being a soldier in the Revolu- 
tionary War. In 1800, he removed to Canada, where the 
father of our hero, Horace M. Chandler, was soon afterwards 
born. 

The mother of Col. Chandler was born in Windsor, Vermont 
— a lady in every way worthy of her noble son, whose loss she 
now so sadly mourns. 

Col. Chandler received a good common school education in 
his native parish, and completed his studies at the academical 
institution in Bakersfield, Vt. In his boyhood days, and while 
he lived in Canada, he was highly respected and much loved by 
all who knew him. 

In the spring of 1851 he went to Montreal, where he was 
employed as -an accountant in the exchange office of George W. 
Warner, where he remained three years. He still continued in 
this vocation in a large manufacturing house until September, 
1855, when, like thousands of others, thinking to better his 
condition, he removed to Chicago, Illinois. 

Soon after his arrival in Chicago, he became connected with 
the banking house of George Smith in the capacity of book- 
keeper, and shortly after took the initiatory steps towards 
becoming a naturalized citizen of the United States. He con- 
tinued with Mr. Smith until the year 1859, when he was ten- 
dered the appointment of head bookkeeper in the City Comp- 
troller's office, which he accepted, and filled with much satis- 
faction to the officials and the public, and with credit to himself. 




^^#^!^^^^^'"r^^;^.Ta^'^' 



L I P: U T E X A N T COLONEL C H A N D L E II. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 147 

He possessed rare qualifications as an accountant, and retained 
his position until the advent of the opposing party into power, 
when he was displaced for political reasons only. 

He was a firm and consistent Republican in politics, but not 
a violent partisan. Immediately after leaving the Comptroller's 
office, in the summer of 1862, the President having called for 
300,000 volunteers, he determined to devote his whole energies 
to his adopted country, and soon obtained authority from the 
Governor of the State to raise a company of three year's troops 
for one of the three Chicago regiments then being raised under 
the auspices of that patriotic and liberal body of merchants, the 
" Chicago Board of Trade." In this undertaking he was ably 
assisted by a private named George A. Sheridan, who subse- 
quently became a Captain in the "2d Board of Trade" (88th) 
Regiment Illinois Infixntry. Together, and subject to the 
charge of Mr. Chandler, they raised two companies, and upon 
their organization, Mr. C. was unanimously elected Captain of 
the first company, which became the "banner company" of the 
regiment, under the name of the " Kimbark Guards," and the 
second company chose for their captain, A. C. McClurg, naming 
it the " Crosby Guards," — the former in honor of George M. 
Kimbark, and the latter in honor of U. H. Crosby, both pro- 
minent citizens of Chicago, who rendered Col. Chandler and 
his lieutenants much valuable service in organizing the two 
companies. 

Upon the organization of the regiment, Frank T. Slierman 
was appointed Colonel, A. S. Chadbourne, Lieutenant Colonel, 
and Capt. Chandler being the unanimous choice for the position 
of Major, he was duly commissioned as such, November 8th, 
and ranking from September 4th, 1862. 

Previous to the departure of the 88th from Chicago, Major 
Chandler's many personal friends presented him with a com- 
plete uniform and outfit, including sword, revolvers, etc., as a 
slight testimonial of their appreciation of his virtues as a citizen 
and a friend, and an earnest of the success they hoped him to 
achieve. 

After having remained a few days in camp at Cottage Grove, 
near Chicago, the 88th took their departure for the field — leav- 



148 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



iiig early in September, 18G2, and reaching Perryville, Ky., in 
time to take an active part in that spirited and bk)ody battle, 
entering the fight and maintaining their ground ■with a deter- 
mination which •would have done credit to a band of veterans. 

The 88th participated in Gen. Buell's campaign in Kentucky, 
and in every engagement of importance fought by the Army of 
the Cumberland, under Generals Bucll, Rosecrans and Sherman, 
— in all of which Major Chandler was conspicuous and gained 
for himself distinguished honors. After the battles of Mur- 
freesboro and Stones River, Major Chandler was appointed by 
Gen. Rosecrans to command the "Brigade of Honor," which 
he decided to form, to be composed of men selected from the 
different regiments engaged in those battles, who had made 
themselves most conspicuous for deeds of bravery and gallantry, 
in honor of their services, and as an incentive to his army's 
future acts of courage and daring. In consequence, however, 
of the depleted ranks of the various regiments, it was not 
deemed advisable to carry out the formation of the "Brigade 
of Honor," although the Roll of Honor was completed, by 
designating the names of the brave men who would compose 
the brigade, whenever it might be thought proper to have it 
organized. 

The appointment of Major Chandler to the command of such 
a band of heroes, was indeed the highest compliment the Gen- 
eral commanding could have bestowed upon him, and an evi- 
dence of his exalted opinion of him as an efficient and skillful 
officer. How well Maj. Chandler merited this enviable appoint- 
ment, his many brave and gallant acts, and his universally 
acknowledged competency as a commander, have since attested 
in every battle fought by the Army of the Cumberland up to 
the assault of Kenesaw Mountain, where he sealed his devotion 
to his country with his life's blood. 

After his appointment to the command of the " Brigade of 
Honor," the line officers of his regiment presented him with a 
very fine and valuable SAvord as a token of their esteem and 
appreciation of his soldierly qualities — a gift highly prized by 
him, and most meritoriously bestowed. 

At the battle of Stones River, an incident occurred, which 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 149 

vividly illustrates the cool and undaunted courage of our hero 
when in action and under fire. 

During the engagement, the 88th heing on the skirmish line, 
a battery was posted on an eminence in their rear for their 
support, firing over them with solid shot and shell, and Major 
Chandler having occasion to ride out in front of the skirmish 
line to give some necessary order, a misdirected shot from the 
battery in the rear struck his horse in the side, passing entirely 
through him, cutting the Major's overcoat, pants and saddle in 
its passage, and killing the horse instantly. The horse sank to 
the ground, and Maj. Chandler, although partially stunned from 
the shock received, with the utmost coolness, raised himself to 
his feet, and turning to his men, and swinging his sword above 
his head, exclaimed — " Give it to them, boys, I am not dead 
yet !" He had hardly spoken, however, when a minie ball 
passed through the fleshy part of his ear, making a slight 
wound, to which he paid no regard until the battle was over. 

Maj. Chandler was a man remarkably free from all profanity 
and dissipation, never having been known to taste of spirituous 
liquors or use a profane word while in the army or previously ; 
cool and courageous in the face of danger; an unusually humane 
commander ; a strict though impartial disciplinarian, and pos- 
sessing rare qualities for a brave and efiicient officer. 

At the battles of Chattanooga and Lookout Mountain, Major 
Chandler took a distinguished part, and at the battle of Chicka- 
mauga conducted himself Avith a heroism unsurpassed. During 
this entire engagement he persistently refused to dismount 
from his horse, (being the only officer in his brigade who 
remained mounted,) and in answer to the earnest and tearful 
pleadings of his comrades, he replied — " My place is on horse- 
back ; and, as I am ^satisfied I can be of most service here, 
I shall remain," 

Thanks to his heroism, by remaining mounted, he was enabled 
from his elevated position to discover a flanking movement of 
the enemy just in time to save his own brigade from capture. 

Subsequent to the battle of Stones River, Col. F. T. Sherman 
having been placed in command of a brigade, and Col. Chad- 
bourne being absent from the field most of the time, on account 



150 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

of illness and on detached service, Major Chandler had almost 
continued command of the regiment up to the battle of Chicka- 
mauga, when Lieut. Col. Chadbourne again assumed command, 
but afterwards resigned. Owing to this vacancy, Maj. Chandler 
was promoted and commissioned Lieutenant Colonel, October 
31st, taking rank from October 1-lth, 1863. 

At the storming of Mission Ridge, Col, Chandler particularly 
distinguished himself, and his gallant regiment had the proud 
honor of being the first to plant their colors upon the enemy's 
works, the Col. himself being one of the first within the rebel fort. 

Annexed is an extract from a letter to a personal friend, writ- 
ten at midnight, after the storming and taking of Mission Ilidge: 

Dear Friexd: 

I am cheating myself out of the sleep I ought to have, to do some writing, 
and will steal time to say a word. 

We have this day accomplished that which the nation ought to feel proud 
of, and grateful to us for doing. I do not write this in any boasting spirit, 
hut, I feel that the blow has been struck that will cause the tottering to its 
very foundation of the so-called " Southern Confederacy." God grant that it 
may be so. 

You will have read ere this reaches you, in the city papers, the telegrams 
of good news, and also the details of the storming of ''Mission Ridge," a 
i:>osition considered by the enemy as impregnable to any assault. 

It was glorious to see the " old flag" — the stars and stripes — that proud 
cml)lem of Liberty and Freedom, cross the upper line of the rebel rifle-pits 
and wave triumphantly on the top of the " Bald hills of Mission Ridge." It 
was all the more glorious to me to know that the 88th Regiment Illinois 
Volunteer Infantry was the first to carry her colors across that line of works, 
and wave them defiantly to the retreating enemy. 

We are off in the morning, God knows where, / don't, but feel certain that 
it is to strike again for the death of the bogus Confederacy; hence go willingly. 
We are reduced terribly in officers and men, but still in good heart, and must 
work while the iron is hot. Lieut. Charles T. Boal has telegraphed you the 
casualties, which you have no doubt received, and from which you will per- 
ceive I escaped unhurt. I little expected when near the top of the ridge to 
escape with my life, but had I been killed, I should have died as I would wish, 
were I to be killed in battle, on the field of duty, fighting for the best Govern- 
ment God ever gave to man. 

In a subsequent letter, referring to a set of resolutions adopted 
by the " peace-on-any-terms" party in the Illinois Legislature, 
in which they denounced the Government and took sides with 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 151 

an arch-traitor, (whose name shall be unhonored here,) lauding 
him as a "pure and noble patriot," he says: 

It seems strange, very strange to me, that men, who chiim to be honest men, 
can ojipose the efforts of their own Government in maintaining its laws, and 
thcrebj' itself. Political corruj^tion is at the bottom of it, and he who in times 
like these clings to any party except the Union-saving party, does not deserve 
the title of an American citizen or a man. You and I desire peace, and who 
does not? We also desire the war to continue yet longer. This may seem a 
little paradoxical, and I will explain. We desire the war to continue, because 
it is the only road to honorable peace, and without more fighting the end of 
that road cannot be reached. Those who favor the withdrawal of the "Federal 
Armies" from the field, that peace may be had, are " liars, and the truth is not 
in them." They know well enough that such action would not bring peace and 
save the Union, for their brother traitors of the South have told them so. They 
know well enough that the only solution to the problem is bitter, cruel war, for 
their brother traitors of the South have told them so. Yov. feel embittered 
towards those men, but what think you are our feelings; we who, as it were, 
have taken our lives in our hands to go forth in battle array to meet those 
traitors who are manly enough to take arms and stand or fall by their principles? 
We loathe and detest them. When listening to the booming cannon, to the 
sharp crack of the rifle, and the zip-zip-zip of the minie bullet which carries 
death in its flight — what think you then are our feelings towards those traitors 
of the North who oppose sending more men into the field? We forget them, 
and think of the more manly ones of the same species who are fighting us in 
the field. I have a kind of admiration for the men composing the rel)el army, 
compared with their brother traitors in the North, and always feel like treat- 
ing them with respect; but if I should go North, and one of those most con- 
temptible of the human species — a Copperhead — should open his batteries on 
me, he had better say his prayers for fear he would not have time afterwards. 
I say we forget them here when in jiresence of their more manly brethren of 
the South, but we none of us will forget them after this rebellion is crushed, 
as it surely will be, and wc return to our homes. 

God grant that light may soon enter the hearts of these men, and bring them 
to a realizing sense of their duty to their country in this hour of our nation's 
trial. 

I tell you, sir, to know that while we are freely giving our lives to sustain 
our Government, these Northern traitors are using every available means to 
crush us and our Goverimient, is humiliating indeed, and a sad reproach to the 
honor of the North. 1 could weep over their mistaken course, but tears 
would have no effect upon him who has murder in his heart. 

I tell you, my kind friend, that every word spoken by these fiends, and every 
act in opposition to our Govermnent, at this time, is a minie bullet sent into 
our ranks, the results from which, in killed and wounded, no one can tell. 
But wdiile we soldiers in the field so deeply mourn the acts of these Northern 



152 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

traitors, we call upon you and all loyal men to falter not at all. Go on in 
your noble efforts to crush out the monster. Strike whenever and wherever 
you find the iron hot; for, while we are combating the enemy here, we want to 
feel that our friends, the unconditional war and Union men and loyalists, are 
doing their part at home. Let the soldiers but feel thus, and they will do 
their part nobly and well."^" 

From the capture of Mission Ridge to the storming of Kene- 
saw Mountain, Ga., Col. Chandler's regiment was continually 
in front, and day after day were on the skirmish line, doing 
noble execution, and always fully sustaining the excellent repu- 
tation both he and they had so honorably gained, and received 
from their Commanding General his thanks for their efficiency 
and conduct during the terrible campaign. 

When it was decided to storm the enemy's works at Kenesaw 

Mountain, it was understood that the 4th corps. Gen. Howard 

commanding, was to be held in reserve, having been continually 

in duty on the skirmish line for many days, but when the time 

cume for the charge to be made, this corps was sent to the 

front, an evidence of the confidence reposed in their superiority 

and gallantry. In this charge Col. Chandler lost his life, being 

shot through the body while leading his veterans against the 

rebel works. The following letter shows forth the particulars 

of his death : 

In the Fikld, near Marietta, Ga., ) 
June 28th, 18G4. I 

Geo. M. Kimbark, Esq., Chicago, 111.: 

Dear Sir, — I am pained to write you of the death of Lieut. Col. George 
W. Chandler, who was killed yesterday in a charge upon the enemy's works 
at this point, by a nmsket shot through the body. Death followed the wound 
almost instantly. It is unnecessary for me to express to you the sorrow which 
his loss occasions me, for you know my high estimation of his character, (shared 
by all who knew him here and at home,) and the warm friendship which has 
existed between us. The service has, in him, indeed, lost a capable, efficient 
officer, his regiment a brave and gallant leader, and his brother officers a com- 
rade with whom they have been proud to do battle, and to whose efficiency 
and continued, faithful performance of duty, n)uch of the reputation of the 88th 
is due. It is strange and mysterious that one should have escaped so many 
perils and dangers to fall at last in the closing struggle of the war, but I know 
that, on his part, the sacrifice of his life for the cause of the nation was wil- 
lingly and cheerfully made; his patriotism was untainted, unselfish and rare. 

* These are, indeed, the words of a pure and patriotic heart, and like as a voice from the 
grave, should scorch tlie class at whom they are cast. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 153 

He died as lie would have wished — on the field — without pain or suffering, 
saying only — "Give me some water and let me die." * * * 

All that I can offer in aid of his friends will be gladly done. We are still 
in the midst of the campaign, when to end, no one knows. The work before 
us is yet hard, but will be accomplished. Yery truly yours, 

George W. Smith, 
Major Commanding 88th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. 

A letter from Col. F. T. Sherman, chief of Gen. Howard's 
staff — dated "near Marietta, Ga., June 27," giving an account 
of the repulse at Kenesaw Mountain — says : 

Lieutenant Colonel George W. Chandler, of the 88th, was almost instantly 
killed at the head of his regiment — one more has been added to the list of the 
noble and pure of our land who have laid down their lives in defending the 
right. May he rest in peace. 

On the afternoon of July 4th, 1864, a despatch from Captain 
H. H, Cushing at Nasiiville announced to his unsuspecting friends 
the sad and serious intelligence that " Colonel Chandler's re- 
mains were on the way to Chicago by express," being the first 
announcement of his death. Immediate steps were taken for 
arrangements to pay due respect to the remains, and on the 
following morning, " on 'change," at the Board of Trade rooms, 
Col. John L. Hancock, President of the Association, introduced 
to the audience George M. Kimbark, who announced the mourn- 
ful information he had received in fitting terms, and offered the 
following preamble and resolutions, which were unanimously 
adopted : 

Whereas, Providence in its wisdom has stricken down upon the field of 
battle the late noble, efficient and gallant Lieutenant Colonel George W. 
Chandler, commanding the 88th Regiment (2d Board of Trade) Illinois In- 
fantry, and thereby bereft us of a friend with a heart awake to all the kind 
offices of a noble and christian spirit, and the nation of one of her most earnest 
and ardent supporters; therefore, be it 

Resolved, That we do humbly bow ourselves before Almighty God in sin- 
cere mourning for one we loved, and for one in whom the nation has lost a 
pure and noble patriot, a gallant and fearless defender. Brave in battle, 
earnest in the cause for which he has so gallantly laid down his life, 
beloved by all who knew him, we honor his memory, and deeply mourn his 

irreparable loss. 

"None knew him but to love him, 
Nor named him but to praise." 

To his aged parents, sister and brothers, although in a foreign land, we offer 
10 



154 



MARTYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



our heartfelt sympathy in tin's the hour of their afiBiction, and tender them as 
our boon of consolation the proud name their noble son and brother has left 
behind him, both in civil ai.'d military life — a record resplendent with deeds of 
kindness, heroism, and pure and noble manliness, with the assurance that, while 
we deeply mourn his loss, we shall ever cherish in our hearts fond remembrance 
of his many virtues. 

Resolved, That these resolutions be published in each of the daily papers 
of the city, and that copies be sent to his relatives and friends, and that the 
officers and members of this Board, in a body, follow Colonel Chandler's re- 
mains to the cars which are to bear them to his friends and final resting place. 

Resolved, That the President of this Board appoint a committee of five to 
meet other committees at the Tremont House this evening, at 1} o'clock, to 
make arrangements for paying a suitable tribute to the remains of the honored 
dead. 

In accordance with tlie above resolutions, a Committee of 
Arrangements was appointed, consisting of Messrs. Kimbark, 
Tucker, Munn, Wicker and Rumsey. The President of the 
Board, Colonel Hancock, was subsequently added. 

A meeting was held at the Tremont House in the evening, at 
which were present the Committee of the Board of Trade, and 
many of the friends of the deceased. Mr. Kimbark was ap- 
pointed Chairman, Lieut. George Chandler, Secretary, and Col. 
Hancock was requested to obtain a military escort. 

A committee of three was appointed by the Chairman to 
draft resolutions. This committee consisted of C. A. Gregory, 
Edson Keith and John Tyrell. These gentlemen retired, and 
soon returned with the following resolutions, which were unani- 
mously adopted : 

AVhereas, It has pleased God to remove from our midst George W. Chan- 
dler, Lieutenant Colonel of the 88th Regiment of Illinois Volunteers, killed 
while gallantly leading his command against the rebels at the battle of Kone- 
saw Mountain; and 

Whereas, We desire to express our appreciation of his worth as a man 
and a soldier; therefore, 

Resolved, That we, in our intercourse with Colonel Chandler in civil life, 
have ever found him to be a gentleman in every respect, and an upright and 
honorable man. His associates in the service also were forced by his admira- 
ble conduct upon every occasion, whether in the camp, upon the march, or on 
the field of battle, to acknowledge him pre-eminent for cool courage, soldierly 
al)ility, and regard for the welfare of his comrades, and conspicuous for daring- 
gallantry. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



155 



Resolved, Thut our army liiis lost, hy the death of Lieut. Col. Chancller, a 
good soldier, and our country a brave defender. 

Resolved, Thfft we condole with the relatives and friends of Col. Chandler, 
in the loss which they have sustained by his death. 

Resolved, That we sympathize deeply with the officers and men of the 88th 
Illinois Volunteers, in their loss of a beloved comrade in arms, and a faithful 
friend. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to 'the parents of Col. 
Chandler, and also a copy to Col. F. T. Sherman, with a request that they be 
read to his regiment, and also that they be published in the Chicago daily 
papers. 

The old members of the 88th were appointed a committee for 
tl|e reception of the remains. 

The body of Col. Chandler reached Chicago on the 6th July, 
in care of Capt. H. H. Cushing, Q. M. 4tli Army Corps, De- 
partment of the Cumberland, inclosed in a handsome metallic 
burial case. On the morning following, the remains were taken 
to Bryan Hall and laid' in state, appropriately and beautifully 
decorated with many handsome wreaths of flowers and four 
American flags, (one of which he had fought under at the 
battles of Perry vi lie and Stones River,) gracefully grouped at 
his head, Avitli the sword, with Avhich he had carved his bright 
name on many a hard-fought field, laid across the coffin over 
his manly breast. The sword was thus inscribed : 



Pi-esentcd to Major George W. Cfiandkr. after the battle nf Stones Swr. by the line officers of his 
refiiinent, on the occasion of his being appointed by Major General Bosecrans to command his 
•' brigade of Honor," in consideration of his gallant services in the field. 

At 12 o'clock noon, the hall was opened to the public. All 
the afternoon a saddened throng of citizens, in whose grateful 
hearts the story of his gallant deeds seemed freshly written, 
passed in with softened tread and faces clouded with the general 
grief, to lx)ok upon the coffin which held the corpse of the de- 
parted, and the true sword with which he had carved for him- 
self so honorable a name. 

At half-past 3 o'clock, detachments of the 8t'i and 15th 
Veteran Reserve Corps, under command of Maj. Skinner, to- 
gether with the pall-bearers, citizens and military, the guard of 
honor, composed of the members of "Co. D.," members of the 
City Government, Board of Trade, Mercantile Association, 
Young Men's Association, Young Men's Christian Association, 



156 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

and citizens, marched to the hall, headed by the excellent 
band of the Veteran Resei've Corps. 

The large concourse which had assembled completely filled 
the hall, except the open space in the centre where the seats 
had been removed, and which had been kept clear by the police. 
In this open space was placed the cofiin and its decorations, 
the stand of regimental colors gracefully drooping its folds over 
his head. 

At 4 o'clock, the relations of the deceased, with the pall- 
bearers, military escort, and guard of honor, took their positions 
around the cofiin, when a dead-march was executed by the band. 
The Rev. Rob't L. Collier, of the Wabash Avenue M. E. Churfli, 
then read appropriately selected portions of the scriptures ; 
after which he addressed the assembly in a few remarks sug- 
gested by the occasion. He said : 

No di'aping more glorious can bang around any man's coffin, than that you 
have hung around these remains. The white in these flags is the true symbol 
of national purity; the red, the symbol of the bloody struggle through which 
it was established, and is now being redeemed ; the stars, the crown which is 
now awaiting in heaven its gallant defenders. 

The name of the departed is only one in the long list of those who have 
gone from among us to do nobly and die bravely. Col. Chandler was a young 
man, and the noble elements of his character might have long thrown their 
lustre upon his life, and upon the lives of his companions and friends, but that 
another and higher power called him forth in the hour of public peril to die 
for his country. I knew Mr. Chandler well; he was a pure and generous 
man. I have heard of Col. Chandler that he was a humane and brave com- 
mander. 

We shall never see him here again. But we have the memories of his pure 
life and unselfish nature, of his gallantry, and of his death. These will never 
forsake us, but will journey on with us until we meet him. We find him an 
altar on which to consecrate a higher patriotism and a holier devotion to his 
country, to our country, and to God. 

Prayer was then ofiered, and the benediction pronounced ; 
after which, the remains were removed, and the procession 
formed in the following order : 



MARTYKS AND- HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



157 



Chief Marshal, Col. Joseph H. Tucker. 

"Veteran Reserve Corps Band. 

Military Escort, composed of detachments from the 8th and 15th Regiments 

Veteran Reserve Corps. 



MILITARY PALL-BEARERS 

Lieutenant Chas. T. Boal, 
Lieutenant S. Titsworth, 
Lieutenant F. C. Goodwin, 
Lieutenant Geo. Chandler, 
Lieutenant H. C. McDonald, 
Lieutenant G. F. Bigelow, 
"Co. D," Guard of Honor in 
citizens' dress. 



£ J 






a • 








> 
» : 


K : 


y o 
u 



CITIZEN PALL-BKARERS. 

R. Sherman, 
Edson Keith, 
Leroy Swamsteadt, 
Samuel J. Glover, 
U. H. Crosby, 
L. Sherman, 

" Co. D," Guard of Honor in 
citizens' dress. 



Assistant Marshall, Col. J. M. W. Jones. 
Otficers in the Army and Navy. 
Mayor and City Oflicers. 
Board of Trade. 

Assistant Marshal, George M Kimbark, Esq. 

, Executive Board and Members of Young Men's Association. 

Mercantile Association. 

Officers and Members of Young Men's Christian Association. 

Citizens generally. 

On the arrival of the remains at his former home in Canada, 
a very large concourse of his friends, acquaintances and citizens 
assembled to pay the last, sad tribute of regard to him who 
they so dearly loved and respected. 

A funeral discourse was delivered by Col. Chandler's former 
pastor, the Rev. Mr. Lindsay, aged 84 years, the resolutions 
adopted and sketch of the ceremonies at Chicago read from 
the pulpit, to the great gratification of his relatives and friends ; 
after which, all that remained of that once brave soldier and 
noble man was followed by sad hearts to his final resting-place, 
where an appropriate monument will iM erected to his honored 
memory. "Peace be with him." It is sweet to die, so nobly, 
so manly and pure, a death all might envy. 

Dying, he has left behind a proud and honorable record 
worth having lived for. Such names and such heroes Avill 
gleam brightly on the pages of our nation's history, not dimmed 
because they are many, but brilliant and prominent each in the 
resplendency of their glorious deeds, as the galaxy trails its 
band of brightness athwart the heavens, to be readily, resolved 
by the observer into single stars. 



158 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



COLONEL MILLER. 

Col. Silas Miller was born in Tompkins county, in the 
State of New York, on the 15th of April, 1839. His father 
moved to Aurora, Kane county, Illinois, in August, 1842, and 
died when Silas was five years old, leaving a wife and six 
children in rather destitute circumstances. Mrs. Miller con- 
tinued keeping house, and maintained her children together 
until Silas (the youngest of the family) was ten years old, at 
which period they all began to earn their own support, when 
Mrs. Miller suspended housekeeping. 

Silas commenced his education under the direction of A. P. 
Farnsworth, in the school-house standing on the ground now 
occupied as the Public Park, and upon the identical spot where 
his funeral sermon was preached. He possessed a decidedly 
independent disposition from his infancy, and at a very early 
age manifested a very great liking for books and study. He 
was a very apt scholar, and while in school, was always two 
or three classes ahead of the other children of his age. His 
favorite study was mathematics. 

When he Avas but ten^ears of age he started in business for 
himself. His first efforts were upon the farm of M. N. Norris ; 
consideration to be received — what he wanted to eat and wear. 
This arrangement kept him alive and in clothing, but did not 
leave him much ahead except in years and muscle. He fol- 
lowed farming only a short time, and even that under several 
different landlords. The last agricultural employer soon re- 
turned him to his friends with the advice, that he " could never 
make a farmer out of Silas, as he had altogether too many booJcs 
in his head!" After being convinced of his shortcomings and 
unsuitableness as a farmer, Silas, unsubdued, determined to 
change his tactics and try another occupation. It was an 
absolute necessity. He was here and must live, and that prin- 
cipally by the sweat of his own brow. The next and only thing 
that presented itself was the printing business. He concluded 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 159 

to accept — JOS, he would even become a printer's devil, and 
live upon his own resources and earnings, rather than depend 
on the assistance of others. In the spring of 1853 he entered 
the office of the Aurora Beacon as an apprentice. 

From the day that the long-legged, white-headed boy Silas 
entered the printing-office he became a changed being ; a new 
ambition took possession of him, and he seemed to live a diifer- 
ent life. He had found his affinity among the types and papers, 
which opened up to him a fresh field for study and thought, 
all strange and new, but in accordance with his hopes and 
manly aspirations. He labored there faithfully for nearly two 
years, discharging his duties in a satisfactory manner, when he 
struck higher, and obtained a situation in the news-room of the 
Chicago Evening Journal, where he remained for almost two 
years. During this time he never entered the theatre or visited 
any other place of amusement, but labored faithfully night and 
day, always economizing and saving his money, with which he 
was to defray the expenses of his intended studies. He has 
related to the Avriter that during all his then residence in Chi- 
cago, he did not go three blocks from his boarding-house, except 
as he went to and from his work at the Journal office. At this 
time his acquirements in the ordinary branches of study were 
excellent, he having spent all his leisure hours for two years in 
preparing for his future studies. He learned and labored regu- 
larly from sixteen to eighteen hours every day of the time he 
worked in the Journal office. iVfter leaving, he again returned 
to Aurora, and recommenced work in the Beacon office. After 
a short while, he entered Clark Seminary as a student, attended 
several terms in that institution, at the same time working in 
the Beacon office all the spare intervals he could find, to enable 
him to defray his expenses at school. 

From Clark Seminary Silas went to the State of New York, 
and spent two years at Fort Edward Seminary. During the 
last year of his membership of this academy, he was the ac- 
knowledged leader of the school in oratory and literary compo- 
sition. When he returned from Fort Edward, he entered the 
office of Charles Wheaton as a law student. He spent the 
winter of 1860 in teaching school near Bristol, Kendall county. 



160 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

From his school he returned to Wheaton's office, and resumed 
his law studies, in which pursuit he was engaged on the rebel- 
lion breaking out, when he exchanged his books for the sword, 
in defense of his government and its laws. 

In April, 1861, soon after Fort Sumter was fired upon, he 
enlisted as a private in Co. C of the old 7th Regiment. On the 
organization of the company he was elected 2d Lieutenant, and 
before the regiment left Springfield, he was promoted to the 
1st Lieutenancy, serving in that capacity three months, the 
term of his enlistment. His regiment was among the first that 
arrived at Cairo, and notwithstanding the incompleteness of 
their outfit, and the consequent deprivations and hardships they 
endured, the young Lieutenant returned to Aurora unsatisfied. 
The object for which he enlisted was not obtained; the rebellion 
was not crushed. Armed traitors were still in the land threat- 
ening the life of his government. This he would not submit to. 
He had sworn to keep his sword unsheathed until either himself 
or the rebellion died. 

True to his pledge, he was among the first to advise and urge 
the formation of the 36th Regiment Hlinois Volunteers, and as 
soon as his three months term of enlistment expired, he re- 
turned to Avirora, re-enlisted, and incited others to do the same, 
until Co. B was filled. Upon their organization, he was unani- 
mously elected Captain. He left Camp Hammond, Aurora, 
along with his regiment, on the 24th of September, 1861, and 
went with it to Rolla, Mo. 

After the regiment was organized, he sought and procured 
all the various published works on military tactics, and applied 
himself diligently in learning the principles and rudiments of 
war and military science. In this, as in everything else, he 
was tJiorougldy thorough. The bugle calls and various drills, 
especially the skirmish, were his daily lessons and constant 
themes. So diligently did he apply himself, and so thoroughly 
did he accomplish his self-imposed task, that he soon was the 
recognized drill-master of the regiment. Although the youngest 
Captain, he was the umpire to whom was referred all regimental 
disputes and disagreements as to drills and military science. 

He was not satisfied to simply possess this information him- 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 161 

^ . « ^ 

self. Ho worked hard and urged strongly to have it promul- 
gated to the regiment. At first he appointed certain hours 
every day, when he demanaed the attendance of the lieutenants 
and non-commissioned officers of his company, and instructed 
them in the bugle calls and skirmish drill. So persistent was 
he in this custom and exercise, that the balance of the command 
considered his bugle and its squeaking cry a nuisance. They 
did not understand nor appreciate its importance. He did, and 
therefore persevered. 

His studious habits and officerlike conduct soon attracted the 
attention of his superiors, and Avhen any feat of special conse- 
quence was to be performed, Gapt. Miller, with his lively and 
vigorous Co. B, were quite sure to be selected. During the 
early IMissouri and Arkansas campaign, he did good and im- 
portant service. At Pea Ridge, when Price and his Missouri 
rebels were first met by Curtis and Sigel, Capt. Miller and 
skirmish tactics were brought into immediate requisition. The 
enemy was met, secreted ; skirmishers were needed to hunt 
them up. Capt. Miller, with Co. B, and his heretofore unwel- 
come bugle sounds, now became an object of regard and admi- 
ration. His shrill bugle calls now became forcible music. 
They meant business. Now we could discern their use, which 
he had comprehended months before. He and his company 
were called for by Gen. Sigel, and immediately sent forward 
as the first skirmishers of that army and campaign. And most 
gallantly did they respond and efficiently accomplish their task. 

From that day Capt. Miller's reputation as a thoroughly 
drilled skirmish officer was a fixed fact. From that day up to 
the time he was wounded, in all the various battles in which 
the 36tli participated, he was certain to be assigned the respon- 
sible jJost in charge of the shirmish line. It Avas his pleasure 
and duty to face the first rebel bullets and exchange the first 
leaden compliments with the enemy in a majority of the battles 
of the Southwest. 

When the regiment was sent to Mississippi and stationed at 
Rienzi, the extreme outpost of our army, it became necessary 
to advance a force beyond the main body as a picket. Again 
Capt. Miller was selected and placed in command, and, as on 



162 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

• 

all other occasions, he performed his duties well. Here it was 
that he first formed the acquaintance of his much esteemed 
friend, Maj. Gen. Phil. Sheridan. *rhat intimacy grew into a 
mutual, life-long friendship. From that time until Gen. Sheri- 
dan left the Army of the Cumherland, Captain (then Major, 
then Colonel) Miller was one of his most intimate friends and 
constant supporters. While stationed at Rienzi, Col. Greusel 
was placed in charge of a brigade, and Capt. Miller in com- 
mand of the regiment. From Rienzi, Miss., to Cincinnati, 0., 
and thence to Louisville, Ky., thence through the Buell Ken- 
tucky campaign and the battle of Perryville, the regiment was 
commanded by Capt. Miller. Never did any officer do better, 
or give more general satisfaction than he did in this terrible 
fight. His command, who had always admired him, now loved 
him. 

In September, 18G2, he was commissioned Major of the 
regiment, and continued in command during its sojourn at 
Edgefield, Mill Creek, and on the march from the latter place 
to Murfreesboro, Tenn., and during the first days' fights of 
that memorable struggle. On the morning of the 31st day of 
December, 1862, he was wounded and captured by the rebels. 
Though maimed, crippled and bleeding, he was marched to the 
rear, and thence transported to Atlanta, where he was placed 
in prison, in company with many of his brother ofiicers. From 
Atlanta he was conveyed to Richmond, and located in the 
notorious Libby Prison for safe keeping. He was held as a 
prisoner of war for over four months, and then exchanged. 
On getting his freedom, he paid a hurried visit to his home in 
Aurora, spent his twenty days' leave of absence, and then 
left for the front to join his regiment in fighting the enemies 
of our government. 

During his incarceration at Richmond, both the Colonel and 
Lieutenant Colonel resigned, and in March, 1863, he Avas com- 
missioned Colonel of the regiment, although he was but twenty- 
three years of age, and quite beardless. 

For instance, to illustrate his youthful look and appearance, 
the following incident is apropos: While at home on the above- 
mentioned furlough, he was in Chicago looking at some military 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 163 

goods, in company with several other officers of his regiment, 
and he inquired to see some shoukler straps. The clerk, a 
wise-looking individual, said : " Which do joii desire, first or 
second Lieutenant?" His comrades considered it a rare joke, 
and frequently told it on the Colonel. 

He took part in all the various encounters and skirmishes 
in Rosecrans' advance from Murfreesboro to Chattanooga, and 
fought on the field of Chickamauga, where the 36th suffered 
severely. Again, he and his regiment were engaged at Mission 
Ridge, where he commanded a brigade, and won new laurels 
both for his bravery and military sagacity. 

After the battle of Mission Ridge, he went with his command 
into East Tennessee, and there endured one of the most severe 
campaigns that has been made during the war. 

Notwithstanding all these things, in January, 1864, he and 
his handful of remaining heroes re-enlisted for another three 
years as veterans. They received a furlough of thirty days, 
and came home to enjoy it. But there was too much matter of 
fact — too much business about the Colonel to enjoy furloughs 
or other inactivity. True to his government and his nature, 
he hurried his regiment back to the field of duty as soon as the 
time of leisure expired. His command was returned to East 
Tennessee, and marched from thence back to Chattanooga, and 
then started with Gen. Sherman on his eventful campaign to 
Atlanta. 

He participated in all the engagements between Chattanooga 
and Kenesaw Mountain, where he received the fatal wound. 
In most of them he had his old place — the skirmish line. 

From his brother officers in the 36th we learn that he had a 
positive presentiment that ho should be hit in this campaign. 
Before the battle of Resaca he conversed with the Lieut. Col., 
and told him that he felt that he should be hit, but nevertheless 
he could and would go into the fight and do his duty. Escaping 
from that battle unliurt, he, notwithstanding, did his duty faith- 
fully, and exposed himself unreservedly and fearlessly. 

Again, before the battle of Dallas, he repeated his apprehen- 
sions of his fate, and instructed the officers of his regiment that 
if he fell, he desired them, if possible, to secure his body and 



104 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

send it to his friends in Aurora for interment. He said that 
he did not wish to remain alone down in that rebel country, 
but added that, in no event did he Avant them to abate their 
efforts against the enemy on his account. He said, " first 

WHIP THE ENEMY, THEN LOOK AFTER ME !" They tried tO 

persuade him that his fears were unfounded ; said that he had 
passed through so many engagements unhurt, that they could 
not think he w^ould meet such a fate now. He coolly replied — 
"Boys, this thing isn't played out yet !" True enough, it wms 
not. 

He who had fought his way from a private to the colonelcy 
of his regiment, was a doomed man, and he, brave soldier, felt 
it. Still he would not falter. He kept his perilous place, the 
skirmish line, until the last moment, on Monday morning, the 
27th of June, when he fell, seriously wounded, with drawn 
sabre in hand, gallantly leading his men in the charge on 
Kenesaw Mountain. He was immediately carried to the rear, 
where his wound was examined and dressed by the surgeon in 
charge, and found to be through the right shoulder and shoulder- 
blade, shattering the latter badly. While upon the operating 
table, undergoing a severe surgical operation, he inquired how 
the contest was going, and how many wounded men had been 
brought in. Chaplain Haigh replied, " Fifteen, and all from 
the 36th Regiment." He exclaimed, "My God! they will 
murder all those dear boys," and then wept like a child. 

Although seriously and mortally wounded himself, yet his 
thoughts and anxieties were concerning the results of the fight 
and the Avelfare of his men. Brave, unselfish Silas ! What a 
loss to the service, and especially to his regiment, to have him 
fall in the midst of the impending struggle. 

He was sent from the front to Chattanooga, and from there 
to the officers' hospital in Nashville. The weather was ex- 
tremely hot, the distance so great, and the accommodations so 
poor, that he suffered severely in being transported from the 
front to Nashville. He knew and appreciated the extremity of 
the situation and the necessities of the case, and therefore bore 
all the incurred torture with his usual soldierlike fortitude. 

Arrived at Nashville, he immediately telegraphed to his 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 165 

brother, and for Dr. Young, an old acquaintance, and formerly 
Surgeon of the 36th Regiment. Harvey Miller and the doctor 
left immediately, and when they arrived at Nashville, they 
found him indeed severely wounded. The doctor and his 
friends remained with him constantly from that time until he 
died, on Wednesday morning, July 27th, just one month from 
the day he was wounded. 

The weather during the entire month was excessively hot, 
and unfavorable for wounded men. Gangrene soon made its 
appearance in its worst and most persistent form, requiring 
severe surgical operations, and the severest remedies known to 
the medical profession. All these means were most faithfully 
applied- and persevered in, but all to no purpose. Empyema 
finally supervened, and the courageous soldier who had braved 
almost everything, now surrendered up his life without a mur- 
mur or a struggle. When he was told by his physician that 
he could not possibly recover, he considered a moment and 
then said, "Doctor, I do not like to hear it." This was all 
the regret he uttered. 

He was a true soldier to the last. His soul was in the cause. 
During his four weeks' sufiering, his whole anxiety was con- 
cerning the army and its achievements. When awake or 
asleep, while sane or delirious, he talked about the army, his 
regiment and its boys. Several hours before he died he became 
some^vhat unconscious, and talked incoherently. He was back 
to his old place on the skirmish line, urging on the boys and 
reporting to Gen. Howard. His last Avords were: '■''Keep doivn, 
and keep your eyes pteeled !'' In a word, he died on the skir- 
mish line. 

The announcement that Col. Silas Miller was dead, and his 
remains were then on their way to Aurora for interment, went 
with a sad and heavy pressure to the heart of every person in 
that city, he was so universally beloved. Thousands of the 
citizens waited on the Friday evening for the arrival of the 
train, and received in mute sorrow all that remained of him 
whom they had but a few short months before bidden adieu with 
cheers and vivas, and in whom in never-betrayed confidence 
they placed the welfare of brother, husband, son and father. 



166 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

The body was taken to the residence of James G. Barr, Esq., 
and hay there, visited by hundreds who desired one glance at 
the inanimate clay, until the funeral ceremonies on the Sunday 
afternoon. 

The Colonel having been made a Freemason in 1861, that 
ancient fraternity took in charge the ceremonies of the occasion, 
inviting to join them such military men as might be able and 
inclined. At three o'clock, "Jerusalem Temple". Lodge, with 
invited brethren from Aurora Lodge, Oswego, Batavia and 
Geneva, numbering 300, all clad in appropriate mourning, left 
Jerusalem Temple rooms, and escorted by a company of mili- 
tary under Captain Pritchard, and an honorary corps of old 
officers — all marshaled by William H. Hawkins — took up their 
solemn line of march to Mr. Barr's residence, whence the 
hearse and mourners were escorted to the Park. Here at 
least 4000 people were gathered, to pay their final tribute to 
the brave. The funeral services were led in a beautiful hymn 
by the Congregational choir, followed with prayer by Rev. Mr. 
Bugbee, an oration by Rev. Dr. Forrester, and prayer by Rev. 
Mr. Brown from Oswego. From the park the funeral train 
passed to the cemetery, marching to the grave notes of 
" Pleyel's Hymn." On arriving there, the interesting services 
of the Masonic order were read. Each brother cast upon the 
coffin lid his sprig of evergreen, emblematic of eternal life ; the 
military salute was fired, and all that was mortal of our bdoved 
friend and brother, the noble man, the devoted and patriotic 
soldier, was consigned to the earth "from whence it came." 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 167 



CAPTAIN CHANDLER. 

Capt. Knowlton H. Chandler, son of Marcus and Martha 
Chandler, was horn on the 30th of August, 1830, in Connecticut. 
He and his parents emigrated to Illinois in the year 1834. 

From early childhood he was remarkable for his amiable dis- 
position, and by his noble and upright conduct Avon the love 
and esteem of all who knew him. He attended school until he 
arrived at the age of seventeen, when he entered his father's 
store at Chandlersville as clerk, and remained there tAvo years. 

In the spring of 1853, he started for California by way of 
the plains, and arrived there on the 24th of August. For some 
time he worked in the mines, but this business getting distaste- 
ful to him, he became proprietor of the City Hotel in St. Louis, 
California, and continued so until he left the country. After 
an absence of five years he returned home and engaged in the 
lumber business in Bath, Mason county, but spent most of his 
time in ChandlersA'ille, in a drug store of A^diich he was a partner. 
While thus engaged at this latter place, he was elected Police 
Magistrate, which office he held until he entered the army. 

Although devotedly attached to his home and friends, when 
the first call was made for troops he offered his serA'ices to his 
country, raised a company and tendered them, but the quota 
being .filled, they were rejected. For this company the ladies 
of ChandlersA'ille made a beautiful flag, and Avhen it was pre- 
sented, Capt. Chandler responded, saying, that whenever he 
should go, that beautiful emblem of Liberty should bear him 
fellowship. At the battle in Avhich he lost his life, that flag 
was torn to shreds. 

When the second call for troops was made, he was offered 
the 1st Lieutenancy of a company got up by the people of 
Virginia and Chandlersville, which position he accepted. This 
company went into the serA^ce as Co. F of the 19th Regiment 
Illinois Volunteers. 



168 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Capt. Chandler followed the fortunes of the glorious 19th 
Illinois through all the hardships and disasters met by that 
gallant rogiment. Capt. Allard, who commanded Company F, 
having resigned his post, Lieut. Chandler was promoted to the 
Captaincy on the 1st of December, 1861. 

His was a noble, generous and impulsive nature — a man who 
would live or die, sink or swim with the stars and stripes. At 
the battle near Murfreesboro, when the left of the Federal 
army was about to be turned by the impetuosity of the rebels, 
and Gen, Rosecrans asked "who would save the left?" Col. 
Scott replied — "the 19th Illinois !" and while that regiment of 
heroes advanced to meet the shock, the gallant Chandler led 
his company through a storm of leaden hail until he fell dead, 
shot through the brain, on the 2d of January, 1863. Though 
his military career was brief, his name will be revered and 
honored as one of the heroes that fell in saving the Army of 
the Cumberland from disaster and defeat. 

So falls the brave ; so does stern war mark its victims. His 
sisters' warm affection — the love of his men, who regarded him 
as a brother — could not turn aside the fatal bullet. The en- 
dearing memories that cling around his name, and the hope of 
meeting him in the grand army above, where all are victors, — 
are all we have of our departed friend. When this bloody war 
is over, when the country is purged of treason, and Avhcn the 
marble shaft — commemorative of noble deeds and a country 
saved — ascends high towards heaven, the name of Chandler 
will be there. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 169 



ADJUTANT HALL. 

Adjt. Henry Ware Hall, son' of the Rev. Nathaniel Hall, 
was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, on the 21st of March, 
1839. He was a pleasant child, not precocious, but fair to look 
upon ; docile, aifectionate, quick-witted, and sweet-tempered ; 
easily managed at home, and always a favorite with his mates. 
His boyhood was a boyhood of health and gladness. He was 
a joy to himself, and a joy to those who watched over him as 
their first-born. 

When he was nine years of age, he became a pupil of one 
of the public schools, and afterwards entered the High School, 
leaving it to his own credit and that of his accomplished teacher, 
fully prepared, for admission into Harvard College, in 1856, as 
a member of what is known as the class of 1860. 

Henry remained two years at Cambridge, and then — that he 
might have a better chance, which he readily accepted and 
grandly used — entered Antioch College, Yellow Springs, Ohio, 
in charge of his father's friend, Hon. Horace Mann. He 
finished his course in that institution, with honor, in the summer 
of 1860, and passed the following autumn and winter in Dor- 
chester, reading, and making up his mind what profession to 
adopt. He finally decided to be a lawyer, and to reside at the 
West. He was a student in Chicao;o when the war broke out ; 
and, after fitting himself in a drill-club, early joined the 51st 
Regiment Illinois Volunteers as Lieutenant of Co. B. He was 
soon made Captain ; subsequently resigning that rank, in the 
behef that he could thereby be more useful, to take the position 
of Adjutant, which he held to the time of his death. 

The regiment served in the expedition down the Mississippi, 

at Island No. 10, and at Corinth. It afterwards joined the 

forces under Rosecrans, fought at Stones River, and took part 

in the campaign to Chattanooga. In the battle of Chicka- 

mauga, early in the autumn of 1863, Adjt. Hall was severely 
11 



170 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

wounded. He was taken prisoner whilst in the field-hospital, 
and paroled. On hearing that his son lay wounded, Mr. Hall, 
after a tedious, anxious, and hazardous journey, found him less 
dangerously hurt than he had been led to fear, and brought 
him home a convalescent, to be soon made strong and whole 
again by breathing his native air. He remained until Decem- 
ber, when he left to return to St. Louis, to be ready for duty 
as soon as he should be exchanged. 

He had the pleasure of seeing his regiment at Chicago whilst 
enjoying the furlough it had obtained by re-enlisting ; but he 
could not go back with it. Not until the campaign in Georgia, 
under Sherman, was he released from his parole, and alloAved 
to go to the front. He made all haste to go ; hurrying along 
what to him was the path of duty ; well knowing, from his past 
experience, that it might be, as it proved to be, hurrying to 
meet death. He had hardly been a month at his post, when, 
on the 27th of June, 1864, the 51st Illinois led an assaulting 
column, on Kenesaw Mountain. Adjutant Hall was in front, 
cheering on the men, when he fell at about eleven o'clock in 
the forenoon. The attack was unsuccessful, and our forces 
were driven back. Some of the soldiers of the 61st were 
wounded in daring but fruitless attempts to reach his body. 
It was recovered the next day under a flag of truce, and buried 
in a retired spot within our lines ; the grave carefully fenced 
and marked by his surviving comrades. It was found ten steps 
from the breastworks, struck by nearly a dozen bullets. His 
death must have been instantaneous. The enemy spoke of his 
daring gallantry, and met the application for his remains and 
sword with courtesy and kindness. 

His distinguished gallantry as a soldier, combined with many 
noble qualities both of head and heart, made him greatly be- 
loved by all his comrades ; and when he fell so gloriously on 
Kenesaw, leading his men to the cannon's mouth, a spontaneous 
tribute of affection and respect was offered by many brother 
officers in view of what they deemed a mutual loss. 



MARTYRS AND HEROE.S OF ILLINOIS. 



171 



Col. (now Gen.) Bradley writes of liim : 

His loss comes nearer to me and hurts me more than any that has ever 
fallen on us. He was, in many respects, the foremost man among us, and in 
capacity and cultivation, had few equals. He was a natural leader, and his 
courage was equal to any man's. He was the most gallant man I ever saw, 
and a splendid fellow in all respects. 

Capt. Waterman writes : 

On the 28th of June, a truce having been arranged, Col. Bradley and my- 
self went out and recovered his body. He probably died instantly, as he was 
pierced by at least ten balls. The rebel Col. Rice spoke of him as one of the 
bravest of men, who had attracted and received the admiration of his soldiers, 
for the manner in which he led the regiment. He was the first from our circle 
from Chicago to go, and while we live, the memory of him will live with us. 

Capt. Wiseman writes : 

Col. Rice and other rebel officers who were there at the time, said he was 
one of the bravest and most gallant men they had ever seen, and seemed to 
regret the necessity of firing on so brave a foe; "but," said the Colonel, "it 
was dangerous to let him come further." (They had reserved their fire until 
the attacking column was within a few rods of their entrenchments.) 

Surgeon Magee, in concluding a letter, says : 

In conclusion, I wish to say, that in the death of Adjt. Hall, our regiment 
has sustained a loss which cannot be repaired. As an officer, he was always 
prompt and efficient, whether in the office or field. He held the universal 
confidence, respect, and esteem, not only of his own regiment, but of all his 
associates. 



Major Rust writes : 

The intellectual capacity and culture of Adjt. Hall were recognized by all 
his associates; but it was his noble manliness, and unselfish friendship, that 
endeared him to me. * * His was a cool courage, born of a sense of 
duty, giving him, in the seething cauldron of battle, the complete control of 
all his faculties. 



172 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



COLONEL HARMON. 

Col. Oscar F. Harmon was born in Wheatland, Monroe 
county, New York, on the 31st of May, 1827 ; his birthplace 
one of the " choice places of earth." His father, Ira Harmon, 
and his grandfather, Dea. Rawson Harmon, are well known by 
the people of that county as among the early settlers of that 
justly celebrated town. 

His boyhood and early manhood were spent on the farm and 
in school ; and though he did not receive a college course, he 
yet had a fine education. The hardy labor of the farm caused 
him to be "well grown," and of a manly form, and, standing 
six feet four inches, gave him the air and appearance of one of 
"nature's noblemen," which he truly was. He had a generous 
and noble heart, always open to friends and friendship. 

He was the second of a family of six brothers ; and he was 
the first of the family (including his parents) to fall — the first 
to pass over that "bourne from whence no traveler returns." 

He united with the Baptist Church of his native place, at an 
early age, and ever after remained a consistent member. 

After the completion of his academic course, his first year 
and a half were spent in the (then) popular law school of Prof. 
John W. Fowler, at Ballston Spa, N. Y., and subsequently he 
passed another year and a half in the office of Smith & Griffin, 
at Rochester, N. Y. 

In the month of March, 1853, he removed to Danville, Illi- 
nois, where he entered upon the practice of his profession, and 
subsequently with Hon. Oliver L. Davis. He pursued his pro- 
fessional career with distinguished success until the summer of 
1862. Few men in the profession of law have deserved and 
enjoyed in an equal degree the public confidence. Respectable, 
but not greatly excelling in forensic ability, he stood unrivalled 
in his remarkable accuracy as a pleader and in the reliability 
and soundness of his counsel and opinions, and in those qualities 
which entitled him to a character, often supposed to be too rare 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 173 

in the profession, of an honest lawyer. He possessed a singular 
power, evidently unconscious, hut not less real, of winning the 
hearts of all around him. Acquaintance with him soon hegat 
esteem, and esteem quickly ripened into affection. 

Soon after his establishment at Danville, he was married to 
Mrs. Elizabeth C. Hill, a most estimable lady. His amiability 
and affection in his family diffused happiness throughout the 
entire household, insomuch that the sojourner of a few weeks 
would depart expressing the regret that the pleasantest inter- 
view of his life was passed. 

He served one session in the Legislature of his adopted State 
in the winter of 1859, as a member of the Lower House. He 
then continued in the practice of his profession at Danville, in 
connection with Hon. Oliver L. Davis, until the spring of 1861, 
when his partner being elected Judge of his circuit, he continued 
alone till he entered the service. 

At the opening of the war he was among the leaders of the 
first military organization in his town. His position from first 
to last, was for the preservation of the Union at any cost. 
During the first year of the war, important business responsi- 
bilities made it impossible for him to enter active service, but 
the struggle in his mind in the midst of duties apparently con- 
flicting, was constant and painful. 

At length, in August, 1862, the desire to serve his country 
in her army could no longer be repressed, and sacrificing a 
lucrative business, the society of an affectionate family, and all 
the congenial pursuits of life, he went forth to share the fortunes 
of war. He was elected to the command of the 125th Regi- 
ment Illinois Volunteers, which position he held with increasing 
popularity until his death. Kind and affable in all his relations 
as an officer, he was nevertheless prompt, faithful and laborious 
in the discharge of duty, successfully striving to bring his regi- 
ment to the highest standard of military efficiency. 

His regiment first went to Cincinnati, thence to Louisville, and 
from there, by forced marches, to Perry ville, where it participated 
in the short but severe contest at that place. They were after- 
wards stationed at Nashville for nearly a year, where the 125th 
became a model regiment. They were then moved to Chattan- 



174 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

ooga, where the regiment remained till after the battle of Mis- 
sionary Ridge, in which it took only a slight part. It then 
went to Knoxville, under Brig, Gen. J. C. Davis, for the relief 
of Burnside, when everything was endured, by forced marches, 
and exposure, and lying on the ground without tents, that men 
are capable of enduring. On the opening of the spring cam- 
paign in 1864, the regiment, now as heretofore in the division 
of Gen. J. C. Davis, and in the brigade of Col. Dan. McCook, 
started south under Sherman. It went through all the lesser 
battles previous to the desperate charge upon Kenesaw Moun- 
tain, with small losses ; and Col. Harmon having never received 
a scratch, his friends had fondly and flatteringly come to believe 
that God would protect him and bring him safely through. 
None, then, but those who have experienced the same, can tell 
with what crushing weight the tidings of his fall and death 
came to his family and a large circle of friends. 

On the 27th of June, 1864, in the terrible assault upon the 
rebel position at Kenesaw Mountain, his regiment was assigned 
to the most difficult point. The brigade commander, General 
McCook, mortally wounded, was carried to the rear, and his 
command devolved upon Col. Harmon, the next in rank. But 
within the space of a few minutes, as he was cheering on his 
gallant boys, with sword drawn and uplifted above his head, 
and in front of his regiment, a ball struck him in the breast, 
and he fell, exclaiming, " I am shot dead," and in a few 
minutes expired. 

He leaves a wife, who was most sincerely and strongly at- 
tached to him, and four young children — the eldest nine years 
and the youngest fifteen months ; thus sundering the strongest 
ties that ever bound man to earth. 

He wrote to his wife on the evening before, and again in the 
morning at daylight, before the assault, that he dreamed on 
the night before that she and his mother came to see him, and 
that they " bid him good bye," and that the parting was enough 
to make "angels weep;" yet, he adds, (and a presentiment of 
his approaching death must have then weighed heavily upon 
him,) " if I fall, I shall fall at my post." 

He is gone. He sleeps witn the heroes of all time. And 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 175 

though many, perhaps, as great and good as he have died as 
bravely in their country's sacred cause, yet it is the spontaneous 
sentiment of all who knew Col. Harmon, that no more noble 
offering than he has yet been sacrificed as the price of a na- 
tion's redemption. 



LIEUTENANT YORK. 

Lieut. John York was born on the 8th of November, 1816, 
in the district that now composes Morgan county, then in the 
Territory of Illinois. His father, William York, was one of 
the early settlers of that section, and in politics always adhered 
to the old Democratic faith — always for his country, no matter 
who were its enemies. He fought in the war of 1812, and in 
the Black Hawk war of 1832. 

Lieut. York lived and worked with his father on the farm 
until 1847, when he was married to Miss Precious Lake on the 
16th of October. When the county was formed from the terri- 
tory of Morgan, he was left a resident of Cass, in the Indian 
Creek Precinct. He resided dm-ing life in the neighborhood 
of his birthplace, except for the term of eighteen months that 
he spent in the State of Louisiana. For a number of years he 
was an earnest, active party man of the Democratic creed, and 
for two or three terms was elected Precinct Justice of the Peace. 

In the fall of 1861, as early as he could leave his crops and 
his family in a situation to allow his absence, he took a position 
as private in the army. On September 7th, he joined the 32d 



176 MARTYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Regiment Illinois Volunteers, at Springfield. The regiment not 
being then filled up, he was sent back to the vicinity of his 
home on recruiting service, and bj his energy raised thirty men 
in Cass and Morgan counties. With these he was attached to 
Co. H, Capt. Duncan commanding, and elected 2d Lieutenant. 
During the winter of 1861-2, he endured hard service, but 
was in no prominent engagement until the battle of Shiloh, on 
the 6th and 7th of April, 1862. At that fight his company 
was in the heat of the contest at an early hour on Sunday 
morning, the 6th, at which time they got partially scattered, 
and Lieut. York" taken prisoner, his side arms being taken from 
him. He was held until night, when he escaped and joined his 
command the next morning. On the 7th, he was again much 
exposed to the enemy's fire, and in the course of the day was 
struck with three balls : one going through his shoulder and 
collar bone, one through his arm, and one spent ball struck 
him in the side, breaking one of his ribs. After keeping the 
field for some time in this wounded condition, he became ex- 
hausted by the loss of blood, and was sent to the rear. A few 
days afterwards he was placed aboard of a steamboat, and sent 
home, where he arrived on the 17th of April. His wounds 
becoming very painful, fever set in, which progressed beyond 
the control of his physician, and he gradually sank until he 
expired on the 9th of May, 1862. 

Lieut. York was a patriot, and an active and efficient officer. 
He loved his country, and fought and died in its service, leaving 
a widow and five children to mourn his loss and revere his 
memory. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 177 



COLONEL GREATHOUSE. 

At the commencement of this unhappy Rebellion, among 
the many brave men who, inspired by an American's love of 
country, shouldered the musket in behalf of our common birth- 
right — constitutional government — must be remembered the 
subject of this sketch, not then arrived at the years of manhood. 
Col. LuciEN Greathouse was born in Carlinville, Illinois, 
in June, 1842, where his father, a lawyer by profession, had 
emigrated a few years previously from Shelby county, Ken- 
tucky. In 1844, his father returned to Kentucky, where he 
now resides. At the age of twelve years, Lucien came back to 
Illinois, where he had brothers and sisters, part of the time 
attending the college at Lebanon, 111. ; and when away, still 
assiduously pursuing studies in which he took, for so young a 
lad, wonderful delight. For many months it was his practice, 
after attending to various duties through the day, to sit far 
into the night, wringing from his Greek and Latin grammars 
that solid foundation from which, iVi conjunction with other 
studies, he might arise the educated man. 

At fifteen, he entered the University of Bloomington, Indi- 
ana, and graduated at sixteen years of age, with all the honors, 
and, as the president said, at an earlier age than any former 
graduate of that institution. Returning to Illinois, young 
Greathouse studied law, and was admitted to the bar, making, 
by his kind and genial disposition, hosts of friends wherever he 
was known. About this time the Rebellion was inaugurated, 
and a company of volunteers being raised in Fayette county, 
Lucien enlisted as a private in the ranks, determined, as he 
said, to do his share in defence of law and order. 

His three months' service in the 8th Illinois Regiment, under 
Col. Oglesby, though not called into active service, was a fine 
school to instruct him in military tactics, as well as to inspire 
him with that ardor in the cause which, in his after campaigns. 



178 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

SO distinguished him. At the close of this term of a hundred 
days, he went to Hardin county, and with the assistance of a 
brother — John C. Greathouse — raised a full company for three 
years or the war, and was elected Captain, forming the initial 
company of the 48th Illinois Regiment, at Camp Butler. 

At Fort Donelson, he was first baptized in battle, where the 
regiment and his company lost many in killed and wounded. 
Afterward, at Shiloh, his gallantry was conspicuous as he stood 
at the front, and when the rebels were making a charge directly 
upon the brigade to which he was attached, his shout of " stand 
firm" will not be forgotten by those of his company who survive 
the war. Soon after he was commissioned Major, his regiment 
was stationed for several months at Bethel, Tenn., and again 
at Germantown, doing guard duty. His regiment, then at- 
tached to the 16th Army Corps, was ordered to Yicksburg. 
After the fall of this Gibraltar of the Mississippi, our hero, 
then Lieut. Col., but in command of the regiment — their Col. 
(Sanford) commanding the brigade — writes : 

After celebrating the July fourth of our fathers in the rebel stronghold, 
seeing the gridiron flags hauled down and draped, taking a drink in token that 
we were glad it was over and the shells done coming, we took up our line of 
march in the dust and heat of dog July. Our army corps, then the 16th — 
and the 9th Army Corps, Burnside's Rappahannockers, moved to attack 
Gen. J. B. Johnston, with his so-called army of forty thousand, across the 
Big Black. Arrived at Black River, twenty miles in rear of Yicksburg, the 
48th acted as advance pioneers in the face of the enemy, who changed base 
as soon as we crossed over. We followed them, attacking frequently that 
Confederate rear you've heard so often mentioned; having frequent skirmishes 
with it until thej' reached Jackson inside their works. We sat down under 
their fire until July 16th, when we made a general charge on the left — the 
Rappahannockers and we upon their forts and rifle-pits. Our regiment 
marched against their siege guns and field pieces, firing shot and shell, grape 
and canister, on clear open level ground for half a mile at double-quick, until 
within two hundred yards of their works, when, being the entire and only 
advance at that point, we (or the men) lay down on our faces and held 
the position half an hour, waiting for the "Yankee" column to advance 
"which it didn't," and after receiving two successive orders, I moved the 
regiment to the rear by the right flank, to a tolerably protected position, 
until we were relieved at 3 o'clock p. m. We lost our Major (Stevenson) in 
the charge, and several other brave and useful officers, and many men. The 
Rebs. evacuated that uight and saved us many lives, and some little glory, 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 179 



for I should have takeu the regiment over those works at sunrise if they had 
been there, just as I did when we leaped over and discovered they were gone. 
As the sun rose above the hills, the regimental banner of the 48th Illinois 
waved over the State House, causing a shout to be raised on the left, that 
went down to the right like the rush of a flame over the prairies. 

In speaking of the march from Vicksburg to Jackson, he said 
it was one of the saddest of sights to see the men marching 
under the intense heat of a July sun, with their tongues parched 
and protruding from their mouths for the lack of water, and, as 
they grew weaker, dropping from the ranks to die, or fall into 
the hands of the enemy. The advance upon Jackson was the 
first contest of importance after young Greathouse took com- 
mand, and to mark the appreciation they earned, Gen. Smith 
issued the following complimentary order : 

Headquarters 1st Div. 16th A. C. 

Lieut. Col. Lucien Greathouse: 

Sir, — I desire to thank you and the gallant officers and men of your com- 
mand, for your good conduct in all the fighting we have had to do in our 
advance upon Jackson. Please make known to your noble regiment the high 
estimate which is placed upon such heroism as it has exhibited. May you all 
be spared in the future even as miraculously as you have been in the j^ast. 

Wm. G. Smith, 

Brigadier Genei al Commanding 1st Div. 

Subsequent to the fall of Vicksburg and second capture of 
Jackson, the 48th formed a part of the 15th Army Corps, and 
Col. Greatliouse now hoped his regiment might obtain some 
rest. But no. Chattanooga was in danger, Knoxville threat- 
ened, and who but Gen. Logan's invincibles must take boat to 
Memphis, march by land three hundred miles, fight the battle 
of Chickamauga, and again take up the weary tramp to raise 
the siege of Knoxville — a march of one hundred and seventy- 
five miles and back, without shoes, the men in many instances 
tying rags, torn from their clothes or blankets, round their feet 
to protect them from the sharp frozen ground, and subsisting 
on the country. 

About this period the time of three years men was expiring, 
though many regiments re-enlisted in a body. The men of the 
48th were called together, and their young commander, Great- 
house, (the Col. having resigned sometime previous,) addressed 



180 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

tliem in a spirit-stirring speech, promising that, if they re- 
enlisted, he would share their fortunes in every campaign ; 
pointing out that however grandly they had fought and suffered 
in the cause of their country, they could make their record still 
more glorious and be hailed as a nation's deliverers by striking 
a few more blows at their rapidly -failing enemy. In answer to 
this appeal, his regiment, reduced to a little over four hundred 
men, re-enlisted and went home on furlough to rest and fill up 
their depleted ranks. 

At Centralia, the 48th Illinois Regiment was feted by the 
citizens and Governor of the State, and young Greathouse 
made the recipient of a splendid sword by his officers as a 
testimonial of his worth, and soon after, as Colonel of his 
regiment, recruited to near eight hundred strong, departed to 
join Gen. Sherman in his wonderful march to Atlanta. 

As an evidence of his devotion to the cause and labor for the 
welfare and efficiency of his regiment, Col. Greathouse did not 
pay even a passing visit to either of two sisters while home in 
Illinois, although he well knew they almost idolized him, but 
wrote that the imperative duties of his command occupied all 
his time, and that he "must go on and fight until the last rebel 
was either armless or soulless." 

Gen. Sherman's memorable march on Atlanta is now matter 
of history. The 48th, always in the van, over mountain, river 
and plain, had its full share of hardships and loss in that con- 
tinued skirmish and battle for three hundred miles : not without 
honor, for high encomiums were passed by General Logan and 
others on the chivalrous commander of the 48th Illinois and the 
obedient and brave daring of the officers and men of that regi- 
ment. At Kencsaw Mountain, Col. Greathouse was struck on 
the head by a piece of a shell, which stunned him for several 
hours, but not to create unnecessary alarm, he characterized as 
" a slight hurt." 

Ever mindful of the welfare of his men, and quick to appre- 
ciate merit in his officers, he was beloved by all his regiment ; 
while his good judgment in military affairs, his soldierly deport- 
ment and integrity, made his worth duly known and commented 
on in the General's marquee. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 181 

He was in politics a Democrat — but a Democrat of the Jack- 
sonian school, like Sherman, Grant, Logan, and others, who 
reiterate the oath by their deeds that "the Union must and 
shall be preserved." And here let us chronicle, as the words of 
our hero, the most withering sarcasm or expression of merited 
scorn ever hurled at the disciples of a Northern projector of what 
is termed the Chicago platform. Said he : " The time will soon 
come when the history of that class of Northern men will be 
engraven on copper plates, bound in nigger skin, and on the 
lowest shelves of hell, form the Devil's library to all eternity." 
One eonbeing accused of Abolitionism — "No," said he, "as the 
son of a slaveholder, my education and prejudices are all the 
other way, but I am fighting for the perpetuity of a republican 
form of government." 

Said he, in a letter to his father, for whom, if for any one, 
he would have moderated his opinions : 

My destiny is identical with the success of the cause I maintain, the triumph 
of the arras I support, whether that success is achieved under an abolition or 
conservative administration — that is in this country. If we fail, and I admit 
no such possibility, then I will not plume my wings like a whipped cock within 
sound of the crowing of a victorious adversary, nor Hve an humbled existence 
where I can hear the chidings of those friends whose counsels I forsook to 
follow the promptings of my own judgment. I would rather freeze with the 
Esquimaux, or starve and die of sheer filth, in the dens where the Hottentots 
wallow. In short, if we fight the old ship through, and come out keel down- 
ward, with the old flag flying gloriously at the mast, as well as ever, in spite 
of the beaten villains that dai'cd to insult it — I'm all right, and will not curse 
the fate that ordered my being. If we fail — I'll go down with the glorious 
riddled old hulk, with the torn flag, with sword or bayonet in my hand — and 
if I can't shout, then I'll sink with a groan of defiance, and a moderate 
invocation of left-hand blessings, on the first knave that spoke his country's 
ruin, in the utterance of the word secession! 

In the action of the 21st of July, before Atlanta, second in 
severity only to those of the 22d and 28th following, our boy 
Colonel was ordered to charge with his regiment the enemy's 
works, while some new disposition was being made of other 
troops. Across an open field he led his men to within a hun- 
dred yards of the rebel guns, losing thirty-five men, and keeping 
the enemy employed until he was ordered to retire. Such 



182 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

chivalrous daring, witnessed by the brigade and division com- 
manders, elicited the highest compliments, — one saying of him, 
that "where other men were brilliant, Col. Greathouse blazed." 

On the 22d of July, 1864, when the reckless bravery of the 
rebels was met by the spartan valor of the boys in blue, far in 
the advance, with five companies of his regiment following his 
lead. Col. Greathouse had mounted a line of breastworks, 
cheering on his men, Avhen a rebel sharpshooter laid him low. 

Alas ! for our gallant brother. At the very time when life 
is most promising — he was but twenty-two — at the very gates 
of a rebel city in the heart of a rebel State, he laid down his 
young life for his country amid the din of that thunder which 
he too truly said was "God's answer to the wish of man's heart 
and the pleading voice of his hope." 

When their Colonel fell, the men of the 48th, by command 
of F. H. Farrell, Captain of the Colonel's former company, 
and a firm friend in all his campaigns, bore his body back, 
often pausing to repulse repeated charges of the enemy, until 
within their lines, they "laid him down with his martial 
cloak around him." Some three weeks afterwards, his brother, 
T. Greathouse, procured the body and took it to Vandalia, 111., 
where the remains lay in state for twenty-four hours, and then, 
in a grove of oak, were buried with military honors. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 183 



COLONEL MULLIGAN. 

Col. James A. Mulligan was born in the city ofUtica, 
New York, in the year 1830. After the death of his father, 
which occurred when young Mulligan was but a child, his 
mother removed to Chicago, where she subsequently married 
Mr. Michael Lantry, who also died in the early part of 1864. 
James, at an early age, gave promise of a vigorous mind and 
noble principles. He was educated at the University of St. 
Mary's of the Lake, and in college, both with professors and 
with pupils, stood highest among the high. He was a member 
of the Roman Catholic Church, and proud of his identity with 
its faith, being a regular communicant from his boyhood up to 
the time of his death. 

In 1852, '53 and '54, he read law at the office of Arnold, 
Larned & Lay. He was a close student, but the law was not 
his only study. The whole field of literature was to him as an 
open garden of flowers and fruit. After leaving college, and 
before entering on the study of the law, he accompanied Mr. 
Stephens on one of his expeditions in Central America, and he 
often delighted his friends with his eloquent description of the 
scenes he had witnessed, the perils he had passed through, and 
the adventures he had encountered. In 1854, he edited, for a 
short time, a religious' weekly paper-, published in Chicago, called 
TJie Tablet; but, in 1856, he commenced the practice of the law. 

He always had a taste for military life, and even while a 
law student, he volunteered as a private in the Shields Guard, 
a fine company of men, whose physical appearance was made 
the more striking because of the enormous shakos that formed 
part of their uniform. In this company he was soon promoted 
to a Lieutenancy, and afterwards became its Captain. 

In 1857-8, he desired to see life at the Capitol, and through 
the kindness of Senator Fitch, he was appointed by President 
Buchanan to a clerkship in the Interior Department. He 
spent one winter in Washington. During the time he held 



184 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

office under Buchanan, he was an outspoken, fearless advocate 
of Douglas, and feeling the position embarrassing to those who 
had obtained his appointment, he resigned his situation and 
returned to Chicago. Before going to Washington, and after 
his return, he was in a law partnership with Henry S. Fitch, 
who, during the last part of Buchanan's term, was the United 
States' Attorney for the district. During all this period, he 
was a constant contributor to the newspaper press. 

In October, 1858, he was married by the Rt. Rev. Bishop 
Duggan, to Miss M. Nugent, an accomplished lady of Chicago. 

When the war broke out, he was Captain of the Shields 
Guard, and proposed to organize a regiment of Irishmen, which 
was accomplished ; but others were elected to its command, he 
being given but a subordinate position. The supply of volun- 
teers was so great, that the State authorities could not accept 
it. Mulligan, however, was not to be repressed in that way. 
He obtained from the dying Douglas a letter to Secretary 
Cameron, who at once gave him authority to raise a regiment. 
In a few weeks he succeeded in enlisting as fine a regiment as 
ever left Chicago ; he was made Colonel, and was at once sent 
to Missouri. The regiment left Chicago on the 15th of July, 
1861, 1064 strong, for Quincy ; and from there started down 
the Mississippi to St. Louis. Remaining there a day, they left 
for Jefferson City, with orders to cut their way through to the 
threatened town of Lexington. He had with him about three 
thousand men and five pieces of artillery. Price, with his 
15,000, soon surrounded Lexington, demanding its surrender. 
Such fortifications as limited time permitted, were made, but 
had the fortifications been half as strong as was the will of the 
commander to defend the town, Price would never have suc- 
ceeded. For nine days the heroic Colonel maintained the un- 
equal contest, and it was not until he had neither ammunition, 
water, nor food, that the demand for surrender was complied 
with. The officers and men were paroled, and allowed to return ; 
Mulligan, however, refused a parole, and being joined by his 
wife and babe, was carried off" as a prisoner by Price, who treated 
him with the most marked kindness and respect. Early in 
November, he was exchanged for Gen. Frost. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 185 

On the 8th of November, the Common Council held a special 
session, and appointed a committee to act with a committee of 
citizens to receive him on his return to Chicago. A train of 
cars, containing over six hundred persons, left the city on the 
afternoon of November 8, 1861, and proceeded to Joliet. That 
town was in a blaze of light to welcome the gallant fellow. As 
he stepped upon the platform, he was greeted by the Rev. Dr. 
Butler, the chaplain of the regiment, with a kiss upon the cheek, 
which affectionate demonstration was received by the multitude 
with the most deafening cheers and applause. Judge Van 
Buren then addressed him a Avelcome on the part of the com- 
mittees representing the authorities and citizens of Chicago. 
To this address he responded, saying, among other things : 

Actuated by a love of this, my country, I entered the fight now waging in 
this Union, with as gallant a band of men as ever contended againsf enemies. 
All I ask is that I may be enabled, with as little delay as possible, to lead 
them back again, and show the foes of the Union that there are men in tlie 
North who will fight to their death in defence of the Constitution and the 
laws. 

These words were prophetic — he did fight to his death in 
support of his country, its flag, its Constitution and its laws. 

On his arrival in Chicago, his reception was truly magnificent. 
He was escorted to the Tremont House by a military and civic 
procession numbering many thousands. He was there formally 
greeted by B. F. Aj^er, Esq. Col. Mulligan responded most 
feelingly, and in conclusion said : 

I am now and forever for the Union, in life and to the death. In bidding 
you good night, I do so with the hope that when I again meet you, I will be 
at the head of my old i^iment, with my face towards Missouri, and my sword 
striking the rebellion. 

The regiment, which had been in Camp Douglas, was recruit- 
ing and guarding the rebel prisoners, but early in the spring of 
1862, was ordered to Western Virginia. 

After his return from Missouri, Col. Mulligan visited Wash- 
ington, and while there. President Lincoln tendered him in 
person the commission of a Brigadier General. Mulligan asked 
if he could take that rank and his regiment continue in what- 
ever command he might have. The President replied that as a 

12 



186 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



Brigadier he must be separated from the Irish regiment, and 
take such command as woukl be assigned to him. Col. Mul- 
ligan thereupon, after thanking the President, declined the 
promotion. 

His career in Virginia was a succession of dangerous enter- 
prise ; though only a Colonel, he Avas charged with the respon- 
sibilities and the command of a Major General. Gen. Kelly, the 
department commander, placed great reliance on Mulligan and 
his men, as they never ftiiled in doing their duty. On Sunday, 
the 24th of July, 1864, at the battle of Winchester, Col. Mulli- 
gan, .in command of a division, was sitting erect in his saddle, 
and Avith hat off, was inspiring to deeds of valor those brave 
troops who loved him so dearly, and who recognized in him the 
attributes Avhich constitute the heroic soldier, when a minie ball 
passed through his thigh and he fell from his horse. His staff 
gathered around him, and, assisted by the brave men of his 
command, endeavored to bring him off the field. It was almost 
certain death to every man who approached 'him, and yet the 
gallant men of the Irish Brigade, with their colors planted close 
to his body, rallied around him, determined, if possible, to bear 
their leader off the field ; but the enemy, p.erceiving the inten- 
tion, concentrated their whole fire on them for a moment. Lt. 
Nugent, Col. Mulligan's brother-in-laAv, and an officer on his 
staff, Avas Avounded in the leg, and at the same moment his horse 
Avas killed. Turning to the Color Sergt. of the 23d Illinois, ho 
took the colors from him and desired him to assist in carrying 
the Colonel off the field. Limping along, he had not proceeded 
many steps before he received a second wound and fell, exclaim- 
ing, " Colonel, I am shot." Mulligan the# addressed the men 
around him, and told them to save the flag and themselves, as 
it was useless to try to rescue him. "Boys, don't lose the col- 
ors of the Irish Brigade," was the last brave-hearted remark he 
uttered to his comrades. He was found some hours after by the 
rebels, and lingering for tAvo days, his life-work bravely ended. 
During all his campaigns, his young and devoted wife accom- 
panied him. She folloAVpd his march, and when he stopped, she 
and the little ones joinen him. When danger threatened, or a 
fight took place, she me)--.-ly retired to a place of safety, that 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 187 

she might be near, and in case of casualty, that she might 
hasten to his side. When he was besieged at Lexington, she 
was in the vicinity, and when he was carried ofi" a prisoner, she 
foHowed him into captivity, and stayed with him during those 
hjng months, sharing his prison fare and life. Upon the ap- 
pearance of rebels in Western Virginia, Mulligan and his men 
marched out to meet them ; she remained-, watching and pray- 
ing for his safe return. The news of the fight, the retreat, and 
of her husband's wounds and capture, reached her in her place 
of refuge. Prompted by a wife's devotion, and with all the 
hope and anxiety of a mother, she, without a moment's delay, 
sought the enemy's lines, and by a woman's tears, won permission 
for Col. Mulligan's wife to enter. She hastened on, but, alas! 
too late. The eyes that so often looked on her with love had 
been closed by stranger hands, in the enemy's camp. The father 
of her children was dead. Nor did that blow fall alone. By the 
side of her brave and gallant husband fell also her heroic and 
noble brother — both at the same time, upon the same field. 
Noble, daring, fearless soldiers, they gave to their country their 
OAvn lives, and the happiness of their loved ones forever. 

Col. Mulligan was an accomplished gentleman. Well edu- 
cated, he was gifted with a mind capable of making that edu- 
cation of practical use to himself and to his country. He was 
an able writer — clear, bold, concise, yet thorough ; his literary 
productions arc remarkable for their energy, fearlessness and 
eloquence. As an orator, he had few superiors. Of a com- 
manding presence, excellent voice, and unbroken flow of lan- 
guage, he never failed to win the attention and deserve the 
admiration of his listeners. In all the names who will n;o 
down to posterity, as the names of those who fell in this in- 
famous rebellion, there will be no name of a nobler man, braver 
soldier, or generous friend, than that of Col. Mulligan. 

The announcement of his fall cast a gloom over the whole 
community, and his last utterance of devotion to the stars and 
stripes found a response in the hearts of the people, who re- 
solved that they would honor his remains and sympathize with 
his bereaved wife and children. Accordingly, meetings of the 
citizens were held, and committees appointed to carry out a 



188 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

concerted plan of arrangements. His coffined body was brought 
to Chicago, and laid in state in Bryan Hall, where a constant 
stream of admirers passed in and out for a whole day. On the 
next morning, the remains were placed in a festooned funeral 
car, and the cortege moved to St. Mary's Church, where Dr. 
McMullen delivered an affecting discourse, of which the follow- 
ing is the closing extract : 

Oh, my country, that you had more such heroes! Oh, that protestations to 
you were not mere verbiage in the mouths of many! Oh that you could find 
more Christian men, whose patriotism is the spontaneous growth of virtuous 
hearts, with roots fixed deeply in eternal truth! Then might thy beauteous 
plains be spread out to-day covered with the abundance of smiling peace, 
rather than be made the graveyard of thy children. Thy rivers seek the in- 
terminable ocean, which girds thee round, white with a commerce bearing 
blessings to the needy of other lands, rather than crimsoned with fratricidal 
gore. Tou want heroes whose devotion to you cannot be purchased by the 
dross of earth — whom deadly envy and foul ambition cannot tempt to rise 
against their common mother! You want them, but, alas, you find too few! 
But you shall have them yet, children of the church of Christ, whom she shall 
have nurtured at her breast, strengthened with that nourishment which the 
blood of her most holy spouse imparts. They shall be the heroes whom you 
seek; they shall be your devoted children in truth — heroes in war, and heroes 
in peace — like him who to-day lies sacrificed for thee. 

Then all that remains to us of the bravest and truest, we consign to a sacred 
resting-place, a hallowed shrine, a Christian hero's grave. We will lay them 
where the wild flowers bloom, fit emblems of the purity of that spirit which 
enlivened them. "We will lay them where the free winds play, the purest dew- 
drops fall, and where the first glances of the king of day, after having touched 
the bosom of Lake Michigan, shall rest, and throw around them a little garb 
of glory, a faint resemblance of that in which the soul is blessed with God. 

After the services were over, a procession, consisting of civic 
and military bodies, marched with solemn music to the cars for 
Rosehill Cemetery, where all that was mortal of the Irish- 
American hero was consigned to the peaceful tomb. 



The following lines, signed H. E. H., appeared shortly after 
the death of the gallant Mulligan : 

Harp of Erin, pour thy wailing 

Sadly o'er the battle plain; 
He who loved thy songs of freedom, 

Sleepeth now among the slain. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 189 



'Mid the shock and cry of onset, 
Whizzing shot and bursting shell, 

Leading on his gallant legion, 
Bravely there our hero fell. 

Ne'er from mortal lips came utterance 
Of a sentence more sublime — 

"Lay me down and save the flag, boys! 
It shall live through coming time. 

Let the sea-green flag enfold him, 
And the banner of the stars 

Spread its constellation o'er him, 

While he sleeps from toil and scars. 

Let the voice of woe be silenced — 
Strike a war note wild and shrill; 

Let it ring like calls to battle, 
Over every vale and hill. 

As it rolls across old ocean, 

From each sea-washed beach and crao 
Sound that cry, so full of grandeur — 

*'Lay me down and save the flag!" 



CORPORAL KIDSTON. 

Corp. John Kidston, son of William and Ann Kidston, was 
born at Port Glasgow, on the Clyde, Scotland, in the year 1839. 
He came to this country in 1855, where, with an excellent 
education, he hoped to raise himself socially far above the scale 
that he might have had the opportunity of doing in the land 
which he had left. Not without friends, however, did he arrive 
here, and he found it a more pleasant task in encountering the 
difficulties and trials of a stranger, to have the benefit of their 
experience and advice. 



190 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Brought up in the vicinity of hoary-pcaked mountains which 
overlook the distant ocean, and where freedom sits enthroned, 
he inherited the sentiments of antipathy to slavery which his 
forefathers possessed from generations noAV passed away. Be- 
lieving, also, that liberty and bondage were incompatible to- 
gether in one nation, and opposed to Christianity and the 
teachings of his youth, — in his manhood he looked with abhor- 
rence upon those wicked ones who plunged his adopted country 
into war, and resolved to give his aid in restoring peace — a 
lasting tranquillity — by conquering his country's enemies. 

With this resolve, he enlisted at Aurora, Kane county, on 
the 12th of August, 1862, as a private in Co. E, 124th Regi- 
ment Illinois Volunteers — Col. Thos. J. Sloan, commanding — 
who left Camp Butler on the 6th of October, for the field, 866 
strong. Dimng their dreary and trying march to the Talla- 
hatchie, in the attempt to reach Yicksburg by land, he was 
appointed Corporal on account of his good behaviour. He was 
engaged in a number of battles previous to Champion Hills, on 
the Black River, Miss.— fought on the 16th of May, 1863— 
where he was struck, while charging on a rebel battery, on 
the upper part of the right breast by a minie ball. After 
lingering in the hospital for three days, he died of his wound. 
Corp. Kidston had particularly distinguished himself, and was 
soon to be promoted for his bravery in action. 

When writing to his uncle, Alexander Kidston, of Chicago, 
sometime before he was engaged in the series of battles he had 
come through, he said "he was prepared for whatever the Lord 
was pleased to send." 

His betrothed reached Chicago from Scotland only to find 
her lover — a corpse — ^killed, doing his duty bravely as a de- 
fender of his chosen country, and he now sleeps near the sound 
of the Father of Waters rushing on to the sea — surging a re- 
quiem for the noble dead whose blood hath made it free. 




L.1 KT) TKN ANT TAP RON, 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



191 



LIEUTENANT CAPRON. 

Lieut. Horace Capron, Jr., Avas born in Prince George's 
county, Maryland, on the 27th October, 1839, and removed to 
Illinois with his father in 1854. His constitution was good — 
his figure symmetrical and well proportioned. Accustomed to 
exercise in the open air, having been early taught to ride on 
horseback, he was by nature and education well fitted for the 
duties of a cavalry officer. 

His fondness for history, and particularly of wars, was early 
shown. He delighted in reading Froissart's Chronicles and 
historians of ancient wars, and often referred to those renowned 
warriors (whose deeds stand there recorded) with much enthusi- 
asm, as though anxious for an opportunity to witness, if not to 
be an active participant in, similar scenes. 

The opening of this deplorable war found him in the vigor of 
manhood, with all his predelictions and temperament ripe for 
the coming struggle. His grandfather served under General 
Washington in the war for our independence, and his love of 
country was instilled into the youthful mind of his grandson by 
tales of the battles fought and sieges of that eventful period. 
At the first tocsin sounding to arms from the walls of Sumter, 
he responded to its call. 

The first service in the cause of his country was as a private 
in the 8th Illinois Cavalry — Colonel Farnsworth — a regiment 
which has carved out its own fame upon the battle-fields on the 
Rappahannock, the Chickahominy, and at Antietam. With 
this regiment he fought through all its campaigns in 1862. 
The manner in which he performed his part let the records of 
the regiment show. At an early day he was appointed Sergeant, 
and after many hard fought battles, and numerous hand to hand 
encounters, he was promoted Brevet 2d Lieutenant for bravery 
on the field. 

At the formation of his father's regiment in the autumn of 
1862, he was mustered out of the 8th and commissioned as 1st 



192 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Lieutenant, Co. A, 14th Illinois Cavalry, which company he 
was commanding when he received his death wound at Tucka- 
seeget, North Carolina. In a few days more he would have 
received further promotion, his Capiain having resigned. 

Lieut. Capron entered the army almost a boy, he being only 
twenty-four years of age at the time of his death ; but his 
record is one of the brightest in the annals of the war. He 
was energetic, persevering and daring, proving himself to be 
every inch a hero. Whilst in the 8th Illinois Cavalry, he was 
the favorite of the entire command, not only because of his 
gentlemanly bearing, but also in consequence of the marvelous 
bravery he displayed. His commanding officers recount with 
enthusiasm his heroic deeds, and to use the expression of one 
of them who was an eyewitness to his performances, " he knew 
no fear ;" and upon the battle-field he seemed to have the 
heart of a lion and strength of a giant. But perhaps the best 
illustration of this point is the fact that when the officers of the 
8th Illinois Cavalry met to select six of the bravest men in the 
regiment to receive the " Gold Medal of Honor," the name of 
Horace Capron, Jr., Avas unanimously placed at the head of the 
list, and was thus acknowledged by one of the first regiments 
in the service to be the bravest of the brave. On the medal 
was engraved, 

TO SERGEANT HORACE CAPRON, JR., 

FOR GALLANT CONDUCT AT CHICKAHOMINY AND ASHLAND. 

June, 1862. 

The cafeer of this young officer after he joined the 14th 
Illinois Cavalry as Lieutenant fully sustained his former repu- 
tation, and has proved him as brave an officer as ever drew a 
sword. Patient, enduring, and untiring ; cool, and unruffled 
in the hour of danger, he was never absent from his post up to 
the time when he fell at Tuckaseeget. 

From his bright record we glean a few instances of his cour- 
age in the crises of battle. Hours have been passed in the 
bivouac and around the camp fires at night by his brave com- 
panions and followers in recounting them, and, as many of 
these examples occurred during the rapid marches in which the 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



103 



14tli Illinois Cavalry lias been constantly engaged, they have 
not been given to the public. 

On the 18th September, 1863, the 14th Regiment Illinois 
Cavalry was marching in front of the 2d Brigade, 2d Division, 
with the 8tli Tennessee Cavalry as advance guard. On ap- 
proaching the ford of the Holstein River at Kingspart, Tenn., 
the advance guard was suddenly checked and throAvn back in 
the utmost confusion upon the main column by a withering fire 
from a heavy concealed force of the rebels. The Colonel com- 
manding tlie brigade at once ordered Col. Capron to move with 
his regiment by the right, crossing the river lower down, and if 
possible to get in the rear of the enemy, which Avas accomplished 
with as little delay as the nature of the stream would allow. 
At this point an advance guard of two companies, commanded 
by Lieut. Capron, was thrown forward to feel the enemy and 
ascertain his position, followed closely by the residue of the 
regiment. On reaching the road leading from Rodgersville to 
the ford, it became necessary to pass a deep stream through a 
covered bridge, the advance moving up on the gallop, (expecting 
that the enemy's attention would be engaged in front by the re- 
maining forces of the brigade.) On entering the covered bridge, 
they were met by a volley from the rebels, who had been suffered 
to withdraw quietly from the ford and take up a new position 
under cover, to meet the movement of this regiment. The 
result was for a moment stunning, but only for a moment, for 
this gallant young officer, perceiving at a glance the position of 
things, and feeling that any hesitation would be fatal, gave the 
order to charge, and heading the column, sabre in hand, fell 
upon the enemy with such impetuosity, that they were com- 
pletely thrown into confusion. When the head of the column 
came through the bridge, the scene was perfectly astounding ; 
the enemy were completely ridden down and rolled into the 
dust, in a hand to hand encounter. They were routed and 
followed up for ten miles, capturing their wagon train, camp 
equipage, hospital wagon, with two sets of fine surgical instru- 
ments, and nearly all their arms ; the road for the whole dis- 
tance being completely strewn with arms and equipments, a 
number killed, and 40 taken prisoners, the balance escaping by 



194 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

taking to the bush. The enemy proved to be the 1st Tennessee 
Rebel Cavahy — Col. Carter. 

No action has occurred showing more fully the importance of 
coolness and resolution in the moment of greatest danger, and 
the boldness and dash necessary to carry it through successfully. 

In the fights at Blountville, Zollicoifer, and Bristol, he per- 
formed an active part in September ; and on the 11th October, 
in the fight at Richtown, where the 14th at first, and then the 
whole brigade, attacked the rebel General Williams' Division, 
routing and driving them to Virginia — Lt. Capron was among 
the foremost. They again met the enemy on the 15th at Blount- 
ville, when four companies were held in readiness to make a 
charge to break the rebel lines and drive them from their 
stronghold. The bugle sounded, and, led by Lt. Capron, they 
charged into the 2000 rebels posted behind fences, houses, logs 
and trees. Here the Lieut, showed his superior coolness and 
judgment amid showers of bullets, as but few have witnessed. 
He posted his men to do their deadly work as if on parade 
drill, when but a moment of thought could pass before the work 
■itself must be done. The least falter would have been death to 
them all ; as, in this case, they were not supported by other 
troops. The enemy were routed by one-tenth of their number 
and put to flight. 

In the fight at Bean Station, on the 16th of December, which 
continued for four days, when Longstreet's whole force attacked 
our cavalry corps, Lt. Capron was again prominent. It seemed 
as though everything was being lost by the powerful force thrown 
against them. No infantry coming to their relief, the enemy 
pressed with all the power of superior strength ; yet, amid the 
din of battle, our men stood boldly up to their work, resisting 
the foe, and contesting every inch of ground, although over- 
powered by numbers. Here, in such a place, Lt. Capron coolly 
gave orders and sent reports.' When our right was driven 
back, and the 14th exposed to a flanking fire, and had, in ad- 
dition to this, to fight their way around the spur of a mountain, 
hand to hand with the enemy with their revolvers, many were 
falling dead or wounded, among whom was a young lieutenant 
— Lieut. Capron seized him,, and, while directing his men to 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 195 

" liokl the enemy," carried him off the fiekl, thus saving him 
from the hands of the rebels, and probably from death. Such 
coolness and duty performed have not been surpassed. 

On the 30th of January, 1864, they received orders to move 
from Tuckalucha Cave via Cedar Cave, over Great Smoky 
Mountain and up the Little Tennessee River into North Caro- 
lina, and attack and destroy a camp of Indians and rebels 
under Col. Thomas, the old Indian agent. They moved forward, 
marching day and niglit, over mountains and deep gorges, and 
over a country destitute of forage or subsistence, arriving on 
the 2d of February — Lieut. Capron, as usual, in the advance. 
Three miles out, he captured a rebel scout of five men, and 
within one mile of the camp captured their picket of seven men, 
thus making the way clear for surprise. After moving within 
sight of the camp, with four companies they charged forward, 
completely surprising them, yet they made for the hills and 
bushes, forming and some of them fighting desperately. The 
Indians, numbering about 200, fought bravely, but, to their 
infamy, most of the white men ran. After the first struggle 
was over, Lt. Capron, with two companies, was sent to capture 
some Indians who had escaped on the left and rear. He moved 
upon them, and finding the rebels in position — a line of about 
thirty men — he ordered a charge, which was successful in 
taking or killing all of them. While leading this charge, and 
while three rods in advance of his men, the rebels fired a full 
volley upon him, and he fell, mortally wounded, no more to 
wield his gleaming sabre in the cause he loved so well. Thus, 
while his parents have lost a kind and affectionate son, and his 
friends a noble companion, the regiment has lost an accomplished, 
brave and efficient officer — endeared to them by the trying scenes 
through which they had passed, and by the ties that try and 
prove men — and the country has lost a true patriot, one who 
always felt and said nothing was too great to give that this 
government miglit be preserved. No if or and had a place in 
his patriotism. Bold, energetic, free, outspoken, ever ready 
for duty, his motto was — 

"Down with the rebels, let them be whom they may." 



196 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

He has died the death of a soldier. He has fallen in the 
prime of life, on duty, inspired by his love and devotion to the 
cause of freedom. He has fallen on the field, with his armor 
buckled, battling for the great principle which nations revere. 
His duty has been faithfully performed ; and the consolation 
remains to his surviving comrades, as well as his bereaved friends, 
that he died in defence of a cause thus heroically expressed : 

" Then up with our flag where'er it may call, 
And freemen shall rally around ; 
A nation of heroes that moment shall fall, 

AVhen its stars shall be trailed to the ground." 

The following is an extract of a letter from Lieut. Col. D. J. 
Hynes, of the 17th Illinois Cavalry, but formerly Captain of 
Co. G, 8th Illinois Cavalry, to Lieut. Cajpron's father : 

In common with the whole of his old comrades-in-arms, of the 8th Illinois 
Cavalry, the sad intelligence of our noble friend's death fell like a pall upon 
our hearts, and pervaded, probably, with a sadder gloom those whose good 
fortune entitled them to call him friend — and amongst the latter, myself 
Having known him as a schoolmate, and later, embarked in the same glorious 
cause in a company, being about his age, and from other ties which are unneces- 
sary to mention, it is but natural that we became attached friends, and also 
that I should not allow his death to pass without some remembrance. 

He was an ardent, thorough devotee of liberty, in its broadest and holiest 
meaning, and consequently his whole soul was possessed with the good w'ork 
in which he was engaged, and for which he laid down his life. His own bright 
sabre never flashed with such lustre, as did his bright, flashing eyes, when, 
with all the chivalric bearing of his young manhood, he was fearlessly riding 
in the van of a desperate charge. His quick decision, clear judgment, com- 
prehensive gravSp of the situation and coolness, had already distinguished him 
in the regiment, and his friends confidently pi'edicted for him a brilliant career, 
and have watched with admiration the star of his glory in its ascendancy. 

I could relate an hundred incidents of his remarkable gallantry in action, 
but to his father, who has seen him in service, it would be superfluous, and 
consequently, I will content myself with one remembrance which now forcibly 
presents itself to my mind. The enemy, after being driven from Middletown, 
Md., (in the first Maryland campaign,) sent their wagon train, under a heavy 
guard, by the road leading to the left over the Potomac at Berlin, while their 
main body retreated, skirmishing with us, in the direction of the afterwards 
bloody field of Antietam. A detachment from the 1st Cavalry Brigade, under 
our friend, the late noble Major Medill, was sent in pursuit of the train. Tour 
son's company was among those who composed the advanced guard, and upon 
coming up with the rebels, charged with the impetuosity which always char- 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 197 

acterizod the 8th Illinois, and owing to the superior numbers with which they 
had to contend, were compelled to retire in some disorder. Horace was amongst 
the most conspicuous in rallying the men of his company, and leading back a 
few whom he had gathered together, to inspire the others with confidence, 
never spared the spur until he had struck the advancing rebels, and the most 
of his few heroic companions had been wounded and captured. Treating with 
contempt the loud cries to surrender which greeted him, he turned his horse 
and rode for his company, who were just recovered and advancing again. 
Horace noticing their hesitancy in firing upon the enemy lest they might hit 
him, and having only an eye for the chastisement of the foe, cried out, " Shoot! 
Shoot! It don't matter if you do kill me; shoot, and you'll kill enough of 
them to make up for it!" and had not fairly reached his friends before he, in 
turn, turned upon his pursuers, and with sabre alone, made some of them bite 
tiie dust. When it was all happily ended, the men and officers, with one 
accord, greeted him with hearty cheers and warm congratulations. When 
asked why he did not rather surrender than run the risk of almost certain 
death, he replied that " Once having turned his horse's head toward his friends 
he knew his body at least would be carried in, and further, it would not sound 
well at home, that I had surrendered without being mortally wounded." * * 

Appropriate resolutions of respect and admiration of his 
bravery on the battle-field, and also of sympathy with his 
relatives in their bereavement, were passed by the commissioned 
officers of the regiment and by the non-commissioned officers 
and privates of Co. A, which were forwarded to their com- 
mander, Col. Capron. 

His body was brought home to Peoria, under charge of Lieut. 
Rowecliffe, for interment. The Masonic fraternity and the 
military paid the last, mournful rites to their departed com. 
panion, whose deeds entitle him to rank as one of the bravest 
heroes of the war. 



198 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



LIEUTENANT APTHORP. 

Lieut. George Henry Apthorp was born near Quincy, Illi- 
nois, on the 9th of August, 1841. He was the third son of the 
Rev. W. P. Apthorp ; the first and second being also in the army 
— one under Gen. Grant, and the other at Hilton Head and 
Florida. At the time of his mother's death in 1853, when the 
family was much scattered, he was put on a farm near Denmark, 
Iowa, for a year, and then went into the preparatory depart- 
ment of Iowa College, at Davenport, where he remained a few 
years. After this, he went east to Massachusetts, and spent 
some time at Mr. Hunt's Seminary at N. Bridgewater, and 
afterwards at the High School at Andover. From thence he 
retraced his steps westward, and went into Wheaton College, 
Du Page county, 111., nearly supporting himself while there. 
Residing in this county when the war broke out, he was im- 
pelled, by his love of country, to enlist. He entered the three 
months service by joining a battery of light artillery, when he 
was sent to Cairo. Here he was taken sick with bilious fever, 
and barely escaping with his life, returned to Wheaton when 
he became able to travel. 

On the next call for volunteers, George enlisted in the 105th 
Illinois Infantry, and was elected Corporal. This regiment was 
sent to Kentucky. They did not see much active service at first, 
but were employed in guarding railroads, often in unhealthy 
situations, so that his company lost many of its men through 
malaria. After about a year's service, he applied for and ob- 
tained a commission as 2d Lieut, in Co. E of the 14th U. S. C. 
I., when he was ordered to Chattanooga, which was shortly after 
that place came into the possession of the Federal forces, and 
where the 14th remained for some time in garrison. He was 
promoted to a 1st Lieutenancy in the same regiment, but in 
another company, three months before his year expired. In 
these offices (or after becoming an officer) he was employed in 
various expeditions against different rebel commanders. At one 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 199 

time they had Morgan within their reach, and early in the 
morning were ordered to enter the camp in silence to surprise 
them while asleep, hut the plan miscarried, and the noted rebel 
with his command escaped. 

The last expedition but one in which Lieut. Apthorp was 
engaged was as a part of Gen. Rousseau's force to operate 
against Wheeler and Forrest. They met various parties of 
rebels, and had some sharp engagements, the enemy always 
retreating. He was also in the battles at Alatoona and 
Dalton. 

On their return to Chattanooga, they were in a few days 
ordered into Alabama. During that short respite, he wrote to 
his father his last letter, detailing some of the narrow escapes 
he had, and how good his health was through all hardships, 
night marches, out in rains without even a blanket for shelter, 
and living without rations sometimes ; and in spite of these 
vicissitudes, he continued the same. It was but five days after 
that, on the 29th of October, 1864, in a battle near Decatur, 
Ala., he was slain, together with another Lieutenant of the 
same company, in a charge on a detachment of Hood's army. 

His body was immediately taken to Chattanooga, and by the 
kindness of Capt. Vallette, of the same regiment, embalmed, 
placed in a metallic coffin, and sent to Davenport, Iowa, where 
a discourse was preached by Rev. W. Windsor, of the Congre- 
gational Church, and the day following the remains were taken 
by his father to Port Byron, 111. Some friends gathered at the 
grave, and after an appropriate prayer by the pastor, his bbdy 
was lowered to its last resting place to aAvait the Resurrection, 
He lies by the side of his mother, and near a former schoolmate 
of like age, who was killed in the battle of Murfreesboro. 

Lieut. Apthorp bore a high character while in the army as a 
brave soldier and a gallant officer, and won the affection of his 
comrades by his affability and kindness. His motives in joining 
the army were not from mere love of adventure or excitement, 
but from a sense of duty. A friend writes : 

After enlisting in the 105th, he was at our house until he went into camp. 
My wife said to him, " Why did you enlist?" "If all refuse to enlist," said 
he, " that can go as well as I, very few would go. The country needs an 



200 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

army, and it is mj' duty to go.'' Thus he said aud thus he acted, although 
he well understood the evils aud the hardships of an army life; all of which 
were far from being congenial to his quiet and unobtrusive disposition. 

Capt. Vallette, in writing to Lieut. Aptliorp's father of his 
character as a man and a soldier, says : 

I believe George to have been a true Christian, and let me sympathize with 
you in your bereavement. His loss will be deeply felt in the circles of his 
friends and comrades-in-arms. Let the thought that he died in the just cause 
of his country assuage the grief that must be yours; and you may have the 
knowledge that Lieut. Apthorp always acquitted himself nobly both as an 
ofificcr aud soldier. 

Capt. Meteer, of Co. K, also writes : 

Chattanooga, Nov. 15, 1864. 
Eet. W. p. Apthorp: 

Dear Sir, — I return to you a letter written to my 1st Lieutenant, your 
son. Of course, you have heard of his death from \vounds received in the 
charge made by our regiment on half of Hood's army, Oct. 29th, at Decatur 
Ala. It was a very heavy blow upon me and the regiment. He had been 
with me about three mouths, and I never was associated with a better soldier, 
a purer patriot, or a more companionable man. He was very quiet, aud 
somewhat difficult to become acquainted with, but he had a strong hold on 
the affections of those who knew him. My men almost worshipped him; and 
when some one cried, " Lieut. Apthorp is killed," my whole company seemed 
ready to die rather than leave his body, aud amid a shower of balls and the 
crash of shells, one sergeant and five men brought him off the field, though in 
a terribly mangled state, having received several shots while he was borne in 
their arms. 

My house seems broken up. Everything about my tent reminds me of 
Apthorp. Every little contrivance for convenience aud neatness speaks of 
him. I am passing through the saddest period of my life. 

There is, however, one thing which comforts me, and I know it does you — 
he lived a Christian and died a Christian. 

I remain, yours truly, 

J. H. Meteer, 
Capt. Co. K, 14th U. S. C. I. 

Such is a hrief history of one of the many generous spirits 
who have given their lives for their country in her hour of need. 




1>1KI)TKNANT OOLONKL BROSS. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 201 



LIEUTENANT COLONEL BROSS. 

Lieut. Col. John A. Bross, fifth son of Deacon Moses Bross, 
(now of Morris, 111.,) was born at Milford, Pike county, Penn- 
sylvania, February 21st, 1826. Having completed a thorough 
academical course at Chester Academy, Orange county, N. Y., 
then taught by his brother, William, now Lieut. Governor of 
Illinois, he" commenced the study of law at Goshen, N. Y., and, 
removing to Chicago in 1848, concluded his studies in the office 
of Hon. Grant Goodrich. For sometime he served, with credit 
to himself, as Assistant United States Marshal ; after which, 
he devoted himself to the profession of law, particularly the 
Admiralty practice, at once entering upon and holding an 
honorable position at the Bar. Ever acting with strict integri- 
ty, he won the entire confidence of all with whom he was 
connected. 

When our flag was dishonored, his impulse was to rush to 
the rescue, and he was only deterred, because men with fewer 
ties binding them to their homes, were offered in greater num- 
bers than the Government would accept. Having counted the 
cost, and fully determined that duty led him to the field, if 
needed, he responded when in 1862 there appeared some diffi- 
culty in raising men. He recruited a company, and was made 
senior Captain of the 88th Illinois Volunteers. 

A month after leaving home found him in the battle of 
Perry villa, Ky., where his conduct gave him rank as one whose 
cool bravery could be relied on in every emergency. This 
reputation he afterward sustained at Stone River and Chicka- 
mauga ; at the latter place particularly distinguishing himself. 

Early believing that the Government should use all the re- 
sources within its reach, and that black men would fight as 
well as white, he responded to Governor Yates' call to raise a 
colored regiment in Illinois, and entered upon his duties with 
energy. Owing to tardy action by the Government, great 

13 



202 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

numbers of colored men had already gone to regiments formed 
elsewhere. Having six full companies, they were formed into 
the 29th U. S. C. Infantry. He was commissioned Lieutenant 
Colonel, and in April, 1863, assigned to Gen. Burnside's 9th 
Corps. The corps having gone to the Army of the Potomac, 
he was ordered to Camp Casey, near Washington, and placed 
in command of a brigade, Avith which he moved to the front 
on the 1st of June, and until July 30th was with the troops 
in the trenches before Petersburg, 

The regiment had so rapidly attained skill and proficiency 
as conclusively to show that black troops readily become equal 
to white, if placed under efficient officers. When it was known 
that the colored division was to make a charge, the 29th Avas 
selected to lead it. This honor they accepted, and nobly per- 
formed its attendant desperate duties. The mine was exploded 
early on Saturday morning, and it is believed, had the assault 
followed immediately, the works would have been easily secured. 
But there was a fatal delay. Then Gen, Ledlie's division ad- 
vanced, but failed to proceed beyond the crater formed by the 
explosion. After this it was impossible to accomplish anything, 
as the rebels had brought troops from miles around to oppose 
any further advance. The colored division were, however, 
ordered to charge, and heroically rushed forward. On passing 
the mine, they were exposed to a merciless fire in front, as well 
as an enfilading fire right and left. They fell in great numbers, 
but the 29th, with the Colonel at their head, led the way with- 
out faltering. One after another, the color-bearers were shot 
down, but still brave hands upheld the flag. After five had 
thus fallen, Col. Bross, seizing the colors in his own hand, bore 
them to the top of the works and planted them on the parapet, 
the farthest point reached by om* troops. But heroism was of 
no avail. Most of the officers were either killed or wounded ; 
the enemy's numbers were overwhelming, and the order was 
given to retire. While seeking to extricate his men, the fatal 
ball entered the left side of his head, and he sank without a 
groan; and, as one who witnessed it said, "all that a Christian 
patriot can achieve by dying for his country, he gloriously 
won." 



MARTYRS AND UEROES OF ILLINOIS. 203 

Col. Bross was married on the oth of June, 1856, to Miss 
Belle A. Mason, daughter of Hon. Nelson Mason, of Sterling, 
111., "whom he leaves with a little son of four years ever to 
mourn the loss of one peculiarly fitted to render home happy. 

In person. Col. Bross was of commanding appearance ; about 
six feet in height ; slender, but firm and erect. His features 
regular and finely moulded, and his whole countenance indica- 
tive of strongly marked character. His native refinement and 
genial, unassuming manners, rapidly made him friends ; while 
his unselfishness, almost feminine gentleness and regard for the 
feelings of others, sincerely attached them. 

As a Christian, he was exemplary, earnest and faithful ; not 
making religion obtrusive, but ever showing that he was actu- 
ated by high and noble principles. 

As an officer, though strict in discipline, his uniform, courte- 
ous, kind behavior, secured to him the love and respect of all 
fellow commanders and the devotion of his men. Interesting 
himself in their moral and religious behalf, they felt in him 
they had a friend, and repaid his efforts with an almost idola- 
trous affection. 

In early manhood, leaving parents and home, wife and child, 
position, and all that man holds dear, he gave his life for the 
country he so ardently loved; 

" And though the warrior's sun has set, 
Its light shall linger round us yet, 
Bright, radiant, blest." 



204 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



SERGEANT CRAWFORD. 

Sergt. E. A. Crawfojid was born on the 30th of June, 1829, 
in Beaver county, Pa. In 1856, he removed to Warren county, 
111., with his family. In August, 1861, he enlisted in the 36th 
Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, when he was immediately 
appointed 3d Sergeant, which office he filled- with great satis- 
faction to his superiors and fellow-soldiers. When any particular 
guarding was to be done, he was the Sergeant appointed, and 
was respected by all. 

He was with the regiment during their long encampment at 
Rolla, and started with them when they left to chase Price, but 
was detailed before they got to Springfield, Mo., to guard the 
equipments that had to be left behind when they thought they 
were going into an engagement with that rebel. This duty he 
had to perform very much against his inclination, as he wished 
to bo in front ; but his officers decided that he should remain. 
He was the only sergeant that had a family, and they thought 
he would not there be exposed to so much danger. It was not 
long, however, till he was appointed to ride express, and carry 
the mail. This was a very dangerous business, several carriers 
having been shot at ; but he got through without much trouble. 
Part of the time he had to attend to forwarding express horses 
from Rolla to Springfield, and was always kept busy, if he was 
not marching. 

He was at Lebanon, Mo., when the battle of Pea Ridge was 
fought. He then expressed a regret that he was not with the 
regiment, but said he must be content to serve his country in 
whatever way he was commanded. About the 1st of May he and 
seven others commenced marching after the regiment, but they 
did not overtake them until the 22d, at Cape Girardeau. He was 
with them at Rienzi, Miss. ; through their travels and marches, 
both by cars and on foot, to Cincinnati, Covington, Lexington, 
and Louisville, and was in the battle of Perryville, where his com- 
rades were shot by his side, but he escaped unhurt. He was with 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 205 

the regiment in that long and dusty march through Tennessee, 
where they suffered so much for water. About the middle of 
December, 1862, he was sent to the hospital at Nashville, Tenn., 
with camp sore-eyes — was there at the time of the battle of 
Murfreesboro ; and hearing that his brother-in-law, J. B. Edgar, 
was wounded, he started for the front, but his eyes getting 
worse, he was sent back to the hospital, and there, on the 29th 
of January, he took erysipelas fever, Avhich ended his days on 
the 9th of February, 1863. 

He Avas a good soldier, and, we trust, a good Christian. His 
mother died when he was in the fifth year of his age ; but he 
had the guidance and admonition of a very pious father. In 
1852, he joined the Associate Church at Darlington, Pa. In 
this connection he remained until he removed to the West, 
when he united with the Reformed Presbyterian Church of 
Monmouth, 111., and remained in it till the time of his enlisting 
in August, 1861. He was a kind and affectionate husband and 
father ; but, when the war broke out, he said he could not stay 
at home when his country needed his services. He said he 
thought it the duty of Christians to fight for their country and 
their honor. He said he could not enjoy peac6 if he did not 
help to fight for it. His farewell words to his wife, on bidding 
her adieu, were — " Mary, hear whatever you may of me, you 
will not hear of me being a coward." In all his letters, during 
his eighteen months' service, he complained not, except at the 
time his infant son died, in July, 1862. He wished to get 
home, but was denied, and the only endearing alternative he 
had was the comforting and consoling epistles he wrote to his 
wife and four remaining children. 

In his last illness, when asked what were his prospects for 
eternity, (by his kind brother-in-law. Dr. J. Wylie, who attended 
and nursed him in his own room in the hospital at Nashville,) 
he said, for the sake of his family, he would like to live a little 
longer, but Avas resigned to God's will, and gave great satisfac- 
tion concerning his hopes of salvation. He warned all not to 
put off a preparation for death until a dying hour. He said it 
was impossible for him, in his weak and nervous condition, to 
concentrate his ideas on any subject. 



206 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



He became irrational for some days at the last ; but the night 
before he died, he suddenly regained his lucidity for a few mo- 
ments, and chanted the lOOtli Psalm nearly through, saying he 
had often sung that psalm and tune at church — (being clerk both 
at Darlington and at Monmouth.) He then, in a most fervent 
prayer, commended his spirit to God who gave it, and his fam- 
ily to the care and protection of his covenant-keeping Creator. 

He died in the thirty-fourth year of his age, at Hospital No. 
5, Nashville, and was buried in the cemetery there — far from 
home and friends, but where many loved and martyred heroes 
lie side by side, sleeping the sleep of the brave. 



PRIVATE EDGAR. 

Private John Boyd Edgar, only son of William and Elizabeth 
Edgar, was born in Brighton township, Beaver county, Penn., 
on the 3d of September, 1839. Early in life he was deprived 
of the love and counsel of a pious mother — a loss he deeply felt. 
Having a desire to see more of the country than that which 
bounded his father's farm, he left home on the 20th October, 
1860, to visit a sister residing in Illinois. Being highly pleased 
with the country, he determined to make the West his future 
home, but the breaking out of the rebellion soon caused him to 
change his mind. Having been in declining health for several 
years, he debated with himself about the propriety of enlisting ; 
but an ardent love of country prevailed, and he could not stand 
idly by and see that flag he loved to look upon dishonored. In 
Warren co.. 111., on the 1st of August, 1861, he joined Co. C, 
36th Regiment Illinois Volunteers, 

He was with the regiment in all its encampments and marches 
after Gen. Price through Missouri and Arkansas, and though 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 207 

frequently staring starvation in the face, he complained not. 
He was in the battle of Pea Ridge, under the " fighting Dutch- 
man," Gen. Sigel, of whom he always spoke in terms of the 
highest commendation. In this battle he escaped unhurt, but 
through fatigue and lack of food, he was unable to go on picket 
for a few days, though he stood guard when he had to be assisted 
to rise and walk with a cane, — the only excuse from duty during 
his actual service. In writino; home about this time, when thev 
were almost without anything to eat, some shoeless and scarce 
of money, he said : " I do not mind it at all. I am willing to 
endure far more to aid in putting down this cruel war ; and if 
peace was once more established on a firm basis, they might 
place me on the highest peak of the Rocky Mountains, without 
a penny in my pocket, and I would be content." 

He assisted to place the stars and stripes on the Ozard 
Mountains. Soon after the battle, his regiment was sent to 
Corinth, where they arrived just in time to see the rebels leave. 
They marched 240 miles in nine days, over hills and valleys, 
through woods and streams, knowing not where they were going, 
or what was expected of them. Of the scenes connected with 
that march he never could think without experiencing a feeling 
of horror. They were sent from Corinth to Cincinnati, to repel 
Bragg's invasion ; thence to Louisville. He was in the battle 
of Perryville. His clothes did not escape so well as he, for they 
bore the mark of rebel bullets. 

His next battle was that of Stone River, Tenn. On Wed- 
nesday morning, Dec. 31st, 1862, the division beside Sheridan's 
(the one he was in) gave way, leaving that General's force to bear 
the whole charge of the opposing column. The 36th charged 
across a field on the enemy. They were ordered thrice by their 
ofiicers to retreat, but they did not understand, and kept on, 
dealing death all around, until compelled by overpowering num- 
bers to fall back, which they did reluctantly, and only when 
they knew resistance was madness.* In retreating, he received 
a fatal shot. His blanket had shifted, impeding his progress, 
and, halting a moment to arrange it, he became the victim of a 

* He afterwards lieard from a rebel, who was engaged in tbe fight, that they charged on 
five full regiments. 



208 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

sharpshooter. He said his feelings were indescribable when he 
saw the rebels charge past him on his comrades. He gave up 
all for lost ; but soon the scene changed, and back came the 
rebels pell mell, our men in close pursuit. On seeing the old 
flag, he made an eftbrt to greet it Avith a cheer, but was unable. 
He was shot in the right side, the ball passing through the 
bowels, and striking his cartridge box, prevented it from coming 
out. 

He was taken to a house where a number of wounded were 
lying, but, unfortunately, they all fell into the hands of the 
enemy. He was so severely injured that he could not be taken 
to Richmond with those who were captured, and the rebels 
attempted to parole him, although he. did think he never would 
rise again from his pallet. He would not take the oath, but 
they took his hand and wrote his name, which act he did not 
consider binding upon him to observe. While lying in this 
house, our officers were not aware that it was used for hospital 
purposes, and accordingly gave orders to demolish it by shelling, 
as the rebels were using it as a retreat for their sharpshooters. 
The pitiful wounded were soon covered with pieces of falling 
timber and plaster, which caused the yellow flag to be hoisted, 
and prevented what otherwise would have been a heart-rending 
scene. Five days he was in the enemy's hands, during which 
he suff'ered extremely from want of attention. He was then 
taken to Nashville Hospital No. 2, where he remained for over 
six months, when he became able to walk a little through the 
room on crutches. 

He longed to see his old home once more. He thought that 
he could travel if he had some one to assist him in getting 
through. With this purpose, his brother-in-law went for him, 
and after some delay in getting his papers made out, he at length 
got his discharge on the 9th of August, 1863, and on the 19th 
he recrossed his father's threshold. He was so rejoiced at being 
again amongst familiar friends, that he exerted himself too much, 
and unfavorable symptoms soon made their appearance. In nine 
days after his arrival, his wound opened afresh, which prostrated 
him, and he was unable to sit up, while he suffered extremely. 
The best medical skill and counsel the country could afford 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 209 

availed nothing. His case was a singular one, as attested by 
the hundreds who visited him in his last illness. His sufferings 
were borne with Christian resignation and patience ; but nature 
could not always endure, and on the morning of the 20th of 
August, 1864, just twelve hours more than a year after arrival 
at home, his spirit gently passed away to the bright regions of 
peace, where war is unknown. 

During his long, painful confinement, which continued nearly 
twenty months, he manifested the deepest interest in the pro- 
gress of the war, frequently expressing a wish to recover that 
he might re-enter the service. Knowing this to be impossible, 
he desired to live to see the end of the rebellion, and the stars 
and stripes waving throughout the whole country; but this also 
was denied him. He was a member of the Keformed Presby- 
terian Church at Monmouth, HI., and died in the full hope of a 
Christian's faith — a brave soldier of the Republic. 



LIEUTENANT JOHNSTON. 

Lieut. Robert A, Johnston was born in the city of Phila- 
delphia. When he was quite young, his father removed to 
Northwestern Ohio, where he still resides. Robert left home 
at "an early age, and came farther west to better his fortunes. 
He married and settled in Logan county, Illinois. At the 
breaking out of the Rebellion, he enlisted in Co. B of the 2d 
Illinois Cavalry Volunteers, under Capt. (now Major) Larrison. 
He was with his company in the actions at Fort Donelson, at 
the capture of that formidable fortress, and also Shiloh. His 
company was afterwards stationed at Columbus, Ky., and en- 
gaged in scouting West Kentucky and Tennessee. By his 
success, he was appointed Sergeant, and while stationed at 
Union City, Tenn., became a terror to guerrillas and their less 
noted companions, the smugglers. 

He was appointed Lieutenant of the 4th U. S. Col'd Heavy 
Artillery, in August, 1863, and was ordered with Lieut. Moss, 



210 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

of the same regiment, to Union City, on recruiting service. 
Here he greatly distinguished himself by his daring. On one 
occasion, in the month of August, 1863, he, with Lt. Moss and 
James Clark, (who was killed in the massacre at Fort Pillow,) 
went twenty-five miles southwest of Union City, and brought in 
forty-four colored recruits at a time when it was considered 
unsafe for less than a hundred men. 

Lieut. Johnston was ordered to Paducah and Fort Pillow 
successively on the same duty, and left the latter place a week 
before its capture by Forrest. He then remained on duty with 
the regiment until ordered to Pine BluiF. In vieAY of his meri- 
torious services, Lt. Johnston received promotion as 1st Lieut, 
on the 1st of July, 1864, and was assigned to Co. I of his 
reffiment. While at Pine Bluff he encountered and killed a 

o 

guerrilla captain, singlehanded, without injury to himself. 

Many incidents arc recited of Lieut. Johnston, which show 
his skill and bravery, but none more so than the following, 
which relates to the crowning act of his life, when he fell, 
pierced by the bullets of the enemy. 

A part of his regiment Avere out on a recruiting expedition, 
when they were unexpectedly attacked by some of Forrest's 
roving banditti, outnumbering them more than two to one ; 
but, at the command of Lieut. Johnston, his brave colored boys 
rushed into line as undaunted and as immovable as the granite 
mountains of New Hampshire. The enemy came on, expecting 
to annihilate them completely. Three times they charged the 
heroic band, and three times they were repulsed with heavy 
loss, ■v\%en they retired from the field, utterly routed and de- 
feated, leaving their dead and wounded in our hands. 

Here Lieut. Johnston fell ; but, like the true soldier, he fell 
with his "face to the foe," and died in the triumphs of victory. 
The loss in the death of this gallant officer was great, but the 
success complete. 

He was buried with military honors beside the place where 
he fell — Pine Bluff, Tenn., near Fort Donelson. Many tears 
will be dropped upon the grave of this "martyred hero," and 
the name of Lieutenant Johnston will live in the annals of his 
country long after we shall have passed away. 




-=?^ss:^-'^-i%»»»S5ic;^-s^ 



COLON EL, MUBP. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 211 



COLONEL MUDD. 

Col. John J. Mudd, the subject of this sketch, was the 
second son of Stanislaus and Eliza Mudd, and was born in St. 
Charles county, Missouri, on the 9th of January, 1820, his 
parents having emigrated from Kentucky the year previous. 

In 1832, his father died of that terrible scourge, the Asiatic 
cholera, at Louisiana, Mo., leaving a wife and six children. A 
few months subsequent to his death, the family moved to Pike 
county. 111., and settled near the town of Pittsfield, where our 
young hero lived until he arrived at the age of manhood. 

About the year 1844, he united with the Christian Church, 
of which he lived a consistent and exemplary member until his 
death; ever showing, by his habits and general deportment, his 
love for the great truths and doctrines of the Bible. For the 
last twenty years of his life, he was particularly interested in 
the religious culture and moral training of the young, never 
failing to interest himself in Sabbath schools, whenever an 
opportunity was oifered. 

The year following the discovery of gold in California, he 
made an overland trip to that land, returning by sea ; and the 
year following that, made a second trip. On those long and 
weary journeys, which were so trying to the principles of men, 
bringing out man's worst nature in all its sad deformity, he 
faithfully and patiently carried out the principles of virtue and 
benevolence, prompted by the generous impulses of a noble and 
sympathizing heart. Many sick, discouraged and unfortunate 
travellers to the land of gold, were assisted and comforted in 
their extremity, and brought by him safely to the end of their 
journey, who, but for his kindly aid, would never have reached 
their destination. lie gave of his supplies until they were 
exhausted, and was compelled to replenish at exorbitant prices. 

Shortly after his return from his last trip, he was married to 
Miss Celestia R. Dunham, on the 4th of November, 1852. In 
the spring of 1854, he removed to St. Louis, Missouri, and 



212 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

engaged in mercantile pursuits in the firm of Mudd & Hughes. 
He soon took a prominent position among the merchants of that 
city, as a man possessing business talents of the highest order. 
His strict integrity in extensive commercial operations — fine, 
social qualities, and untiring devotion to the welfare of his 
friends, endeared him to all who came within the sphere of his 
influence. He remained in St. Louis until 1859. In the 
autumn of that year, he removed to Chicago, and entered into 
business in that city, with his accustomed zeal and fidelity — 
doing a prosperous and lucrative trade. He here, as elsewhere, 
soon won the love and confidence of a large circle of admiring 
friends. 

Upon the breaking out of the great Rebellion, from purely, 
patriotic motives, and an undying love for Republican principles 
and institutions — leaving home, family and friends, all of which 
he fondly loved — he ofi'ered his services to his country. 

In October, 1861, he was commissioned 1st Major of the 2d 
Illinois Cavalry. The regiment went immediately into active 
service*, being ordered to Paducah, Kentucky. In the service, 
as elsewhere, he soon proved himself capable and trustworthy. 
His devotion to the interests and welfare of the soldiers under 
his command, and the courtesy and uniform kindness in his 
deportment to and intercourse with his brother officers, won for 
him the love and regard of all. 

He, with his regiment, took an active part in all the operations 
of the siege of Fort Donelson. After the surrender of the 
Fort, Major Mudd, learning that a man Avith important papers 
was effecting his escape, pursued him beyond our lines, when he 
met a citizen who begged for his promise of security, which 
Avas readily given. While they were riding toward the town of 
Dover, two other citizens joined them, who also asked for and 
received his pledge of protection. While conversing on the 
exciting events of the day, the first one, who (the Major after- 
wards learned) was a notoriously desperate character, fell in 
the rear, drew his revolver and fired at the Major, inflicting a 
severe and dangerous wound near the spine. The Major put 
spurs to hrs horse, and the cowardly traitor fired again, without 
effect, then wheeled his horse and fled. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 213 

On his way to our lines, and while suffering acutely from his 
wound and loss of blood, the Major captured a rebel Lieutenant, 
and compelled him to ride into camp in advance, having just 
realized the true import of "southern chivalry" and honor. In 
the confusion and rejoicing consequent upon taking the rebel 
works, and the amount of labor the surgeons had to perform in 
the field, he had considerable difficulty in finding one to ex- 
amine and dress his wound. The ball could never be extracted. 
The wound healed slowly, and he never fully recovered from its 
effects, carrying the rebel lead with him to his grave. He was 
at home a short time on leave of absence ; and when he was 
again ready to take the field, he was ordered on detached 
service as Aid on Gren. McClernand's staff; the duties of which 
office he faithfully discharged, until that officer was relieved of 
the command of the 19th Army Corps, during the siege of 
Vicksburg. 

He was at the siege of Corinth, Miss., and shortly after its 
evacuation, was sent by Gen. McClernand to Washington City 
on business. Before his return, Lieut. Col. Hogg, of the 2d 
Illinois Cavalry, was killed in the battle of Britton's Lane, Tenn. 
Immediately on his return, he received the Lieutenant Colonel's 
commission of the regiment. In the following winter, he was 
engaged in the military operations at and near Holly Springs, 
Miss. ; and in the battle of that place, not only refused to 
surrender, but with a part of his regiment, cut his way through 
the rebel forces and escaped, his daring and gallantry making 
him the hero of that affair. 

In the winter of 1863, Col. Noble, of the 2d Illinois Cavalry, 
was mustered out of the service, and Lieut. Col. Mudd was 
promoted to the colonelcy of the regiment. In the following 
spring, the regiment was ordered to Milliken's Bend ; and on 
the way they landed at Greenville, Miss., had a battle with the 
rebels, and completely dispersed them. The regiment then 
re-embarked and proceeded to its destination. 

In all the battles and operations of Gen. Grant's campaign, 
from Grand Gulf to Vicksburg, he was actively engaged ; and 
at the battle of Black River Bridge, particularly distinguished 
himself by his prudence and heroism. 



214 MAKTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

During the siege of Vicksburg, lie was in command, super- 
intending the obstructing of the roads and approaches to the 
city, so as to protect Gen. Grant's rear from any attack that 
General Joe Johnston might make to relieve Pemberton's be- 
leaguered army, which duty he faithfully and judiciously per- 
formed. 

A few days before the surrender of the rebel army and the 
city of Vicksburg, while rcconnoitering in the Black River 
swamp, he was fired on by a concealed foe, at short range, one 
shot taking eifect in his face, just beloAV the left eye, the ball 
lodging near the ear : the other struck just above the collar- 
bone, and passed nearly out on the shoulder, and was afterwards 
taken out. From these wounds, he bled profusely ; and, but 
for the timely assistance of his aids, must have been taken 
prisoner, they supporting him on his horse until he arrived at a 
place of security at the house of a widowed lady, who did all in 
her power to render him comfortable, when a surgeon came with 
an ambulance, and conveyed him to safer quarters. He again 
returned home, and soon recovered from these wounds. During 
his absence, his command was ordered to New Orleans, where 
he quickly joined it. The regiment accompanied Gen. Banks 
in his Texan campaign, and he was engaged in its operations, 
battles, and many skirmishes, acting as Brigadier General. 

During the winter, his liealth becoming much impaired by 
the hardships and exposure he had undergone, he obtained 
leave of absence, to return home and recuperate. On arriving 
at New Orleans, he received orders to recruit his regiment. 
He immediately went to Springfield, Illinois, and opened a 
recruiting office. In the meantime, a large majority of the 
regiment re-enlisted as veterans, and came home on furlough. 
In a few weeks, the ranks of the regiment were filled, and it 
was ready again to take the field. They arrived in St. Louis, 
Missouri, on their way south, when, on the 30th of March, 
the Veteran Reception Committee of that city gave the heroic 
Colonel and his gallant soldiers an enthusiastic reception and 
a sumptuous dinner. They took ship on the 3d of April for 
New Orleans, and immediately on their arrival, were ordered 
to Baton Rouo-e, where Col. Mudd received an order from Gen. 




MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 215 

Banks to report, without delay, to Gen. McClernand at Alex- 
andria, La., as chief of staff. 

On the first day of May, 1864, he embarked on board the 
steamer City Belle, and on the 3d, left the mouth of Red River 
for Alexandria. At C p. M. of that day, when at Dunne's 
Bayou, five miles above Snaggy Point, the guerrillas opened a 
masked battery upon the steamer, consisting of two pieces of 
artillery, at first, firing solid shot. The second shot killed the 
pilot, and broke the wheel ; the fifth entered one of the boilers, 
causing it to explode. The boat soon became so disabled that 
it was unmanageable. Col. Speigle, of the 120th Ohio Infantry, 
was tlie senior ofiicer in command. In a few minutes after the 
attack was commenced, he was killed. Col. Mudd then took 
charge, and ordered the engineer to run the boat ashore, but 
his efforts proved fruitless. All this time, a perfect storm of 
leaden hail rained upon the ill-fated steamer ; the rebels, after 
the fifth shot, firing grape and canister at short range, every 
discharge doing fearful execution. In this terrible extremity, 
the gallant Colonel put a life preserver around Mr. Daniel 
Bates, who swam ashore, carrying a line, intending to land the 
boat, and make a dash at the guerrillas, who were inferior in 
numbers to the troops on the steamer. At this critical junct- 
ure, a shot struck the Colonel in the forehead, when he fell and 
instantly expired. The vessel was surrendered. The guerrillas 
robbed the living and the dead, took the body of the Colonel 
.ashore and buried it, marking the spot, and then burned the 
steamboat. Of the GUO soldiers on board, about 160 escaped ; 
the remainder were either killed or captured. Mr. Daniel Bates 
and the Colonel's orderly escaped, and arrived safe at Alex- 
andria. In a few days after, they returned and exhumed the 
body, placed it in a wooden box, and took it to Noav Orleans, 
where they procured a metallic coffin, and accompanied it to 
Pittsfield, 111. A funeral sermon was delivered, and the body 
followed to its home in the city of the dead, by a sadly, be- 
reaved family, and hundreds of sorrowing friends. 

Thus fell, at the post of duty, another victim at the shrine 
of rebellion. Let his own words, in a letter to his wife, on 
the eve of an engagement, prove his sincerity and devotion : 



216 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS, 

"I f^o forth to battle — if I fall, the blood of another martyr will 
enrich the soil, to nourish the tree of Liberty." 

In his death, our country has lost a pure patriot — the army, 
a gallant and skillful officer — society, one of its brightest orna- 
ments — his wife and little daughter, all there is in a loving 
husband and fond father — and an aged mother, a supporting 
staff in her declining years. 

The writer was acquainted with the Colonel for twenty-seven 
years ; most of that time, intimately so. Knew him in all the 
relations of life — as a son, dutiful and affectionate — as a hus- 
band and father, devoted and loving — as a Christian, consistent 
and zealous — as a friend, ardent, kind and obliging — as a man, 
noble, pure and honorable — and as a soldier, gallant and patri- 
otic, possessing a devotion to liberty and his country, that 
prompted him to willingly offer his bleeding body upon the altar 
of the Republic's glory and honor. 




"^'/Z 



DOCTOR COATSWORTH. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 217 



DOCTOR COATSWORTH. 

Dr. George Coatsworth was born on the 3d of February, 
1832. His parents, who were Scotch and English, migrated 
from England to Canada, and settled in Romney, fronting Lake 
Erie. Here they purchased a farm, where, in due course of 
time, George, who was the youngest in a family of three sisters 
and five brothers, was born. His father was much respected, and 
held many important offices throughout the country. George, a 
handsome, promising lad, who attracted much attention, was sent 
early to the district school, in which he soon outstripped his 
young companions. Mathematics were his special /or^e; but he 
was an adept also in all departments, and had made considerable 
proficiency in other branches while he was yet of tender years. 

At the age of twelve, he was placed under the care of an 
Episcopal clergyman, for instruction in the languages, prepara- 
tory to his choice of a profession ; but his parents soon discovered 
that the very light of the household had gone out with him, 
and he was recalled, after an absence of one year. 

He was subsequently sent to Caradoc Academy, a school of 
high standing in London, C.W. Here he remained some years, 
and left the- college with honors. He was sent next to the 
Medical University at Buffalo, N. Y., where he applied himself 
closely to study for three consecutive years, spending most of 
his intermediate vacations in the hospitals of New York city, 
and graduating with the highest commendations of the Profes- 
sors, both for his medical and anatomical knowledge. 

On returning home, his next step was to seek a field for 
practice, near a medical college if possible, that he might thus 
enlarge his experience and learning. To this, however, there 
were many obstacles. His friends refused to part with him; 
and, having expectations from his father's estate, he yielded to 
their entreaties, and settled in the town of Kingsville, a charm- 
ing, little place, on the banks of the Erie. Here he met with 



L 



218 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



good success, and soon commanded an extensive practice. His 
large, social nature, which was ever the charm of his character, 
drew around him an extensive circle of admiring friends ; and 
at the age of twenty-three, he was a man far beyond his years 
in social as well as professional influence. 

About this time he met with, and afterwards married, Miss 
S. S. Flood, a lady of liberal education and fine, natural ability. 
To a bright, gonial, and sunny nature like his, a happy union, 
such as tliis proved to be, was all that seemed necessary to com- 
plete and crown his manhood. He had his struggles, like the 
rest of us, and also his triumphs ; but he was so fortunately 
tempered, that he was not discouraged by the former, nor un- 
duly elated by the latter. 

On the 27th of May, 1856, he was commissioned as Surgeon 
in the 4th Battalion of Essex (Canadian) Artillery, an office the 
duties of which he discharged with his usual zeal and conscien- 
tiousness. This was his first introc'uction to military life — the 
presage of that brief but honorable career in which he subse- 
quently distinguished himself, and finally closed his humane 
labors. It soon became evident, even at this early period, that 
he was not destined to be tied down to a small country town. 
His reputation had traveled considerably beyond the "parish 
boundaries," and intimations were not wanting that he must 
seek his fortunes in a wider sphere, and enlarge the province 
of his usefulness. He also felt that Kingsville was not his final 
resting place, although he was content to work on, and bide his 
time. His friends were most anxious that he should remain 
amongst them, and his unhappy father — in imbecile affection 
for his favorite son, whom he could not bear from his sight — 
thought to coerce his residence by cutting him off with a shilling, 
a piece of injustice which he was actually allowed to perpetrate, 
we fear, without overmuch remonstrance. On the death of the 
old gentleman, to whom George had always been a loving and 
dutiful son, he felt free to make a home in the place of his choice. 
The community in which he practised had become greatly at- 
tached to their young physician, and were almost ready to claim 
him as personal property ; but, regardless of the many induce- 
ments which were held out to him to remain with them, he closed 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 219 

his business ; and amid the tears of many, and the deep regrets 
of all, he bade adieu to the scenes of his nativity, exchanging 
the grasp of old-timed and well-tried friendship for the cold 
recognition of a strange and populous city. 

On the 28th of March, 1857, Dr. Coatsworth, with his young 
wife, took up his abode in Chicago, 111. Letters of introduction 
had been tendered him from his old tutors in Buffalo to some of 
the leading physicians in the " Garden City," which were ac- 
cepted, and from which we quote as evidence of the high esteem 
in which he was held by those most competent to form a judg- 
ment of his professional abilities and character. 

Prof. Hamilton says : 

My esteemed young friend, Dr. Coatsworth, a late graduate of our college, 
is worthy of any attention you may bestow upon him. 

Prof. White : 

He is one of our finest graduates, and a young man of rare talents. The 
attention you niaj' please to show him for my sake, 1 have no doubt you will 
be happy to continue for his own. 

Professors Flint, Dalton and others gave similar testimony, 
and the medical fraternity of the city took him cordially by the 
hand. He became at once, a member of the Cook County 
Medical Association, and soon after entered into partnership 
with Dr. Wardner, under the firm-name of " Coatsworth & 
Wardner." (The latter gentleman now a Brigade Surgeon in the 
army.) After more than a year's successful practice, the firm 
was dissolved, owing chiefly to a strong desire which had pos- 
sessed Dr. Coatsworth of becoming acquainted with the laws of 
his adopted covmtry. He may have imagined also that the 
kind of talents which lie possessed might be turned to a more 
remunerative account by the study and practice of law — espec- 
ially as a pleader at the bar — than by following the profession 
of medicine. Various motives no doubt operated upon him, and 
entered into the decision to which he finally came. He was 
young, and not without a manly ambition to make the best of 
his abilities. He had good reasoning and analytical powers, a 
fine voice, and a commanding presence — faculties and qualities 
of essential regard to forensic success. The Law, at all events. 



220 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

was an untried field to him, and much as he loved his profession, 
there might have been still more weighty inducements than any 
now named to tempt him to try his fortunes in that new region 
of intellectual enterprise. It is certain, however, that he did 
not act from mere caprice in thus abandoning the old for the 
new profession ; and thus much is necessary to be said, by way 
of justifying him from any charges of that nature. 

He was presented with the following resolutions upon his 
leaving the Cook County Medical Association : 

To Dr. George Coatsworth, of Cuicago: 

Dear Sir, — At our last meetiug, it was communicated to us that you had 
ceased to be an active member of tlie medical profession, and had become 
identified with the Bar of this city. And although very loth to lose you from 
our number, yet to express to some extent the warm friendship we bear you, 
and the high appreciation we entertain for your acquirements as a physician, 
the following resolution was offered, and unanimously passed: 

Whereas, Dr. George Coatsworth, a member of this society, has withdrawn from 
professional intercourse with us, and entered upon the practice of law, — therefore. Resolved, 
That he retires with our profound respect for his many attainments, and our best wishes 
for his success in the new sphere which he has chosen. 

Similar good wishes came in from all quarters where his friends 
were, and that is, from every quarter, for he was a man without 
an open enemy ! He forthwith began the study of law with 
zeal an^ earnestness. Never did student work harder. He 
had an insatiable thirst for knowledge, and the day seemed too 
short for the gratification of his intellectual appetite. Often 
has he been left at night with a book in his hand and a lamp 
by his bedside, and found next morning still hard at work, 
accumulating material on which to build a future reputation. 
The money crisis, which had been tightening its coils for so 
long a time around the Empire City of the West, had this 
winter reached its climax ; and many men were driven to 
abandon professional life, by the sheer force of circumstances. 
Not so this brave student ! "iW? desperandum' was his chosen 
motto; and "who help themselves, God will help," were his 
frequent words of self-encouragement. He was never downcast, 
or disheartened. A great, indomitable courage lay at the bot- 
tom of his nature, and he was always equal to his necessities : 
studying a new profession, paying his debts, and supporting a 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 221 

family, when most men at that time found it hard to perform 
any one of these duties. 

After the necessary preparatory study, he was admitted to 
the Bar of the State, and practiced at the Chicago Bar in part- 
nership with Lester L. (now Aldermen) Bond. As a lawyer, 
he gave great promise. Judge Manierre said of him : 

young Dr. Coatsworth is destined to become one of the leading spirits of 
the West. He possesses undoubted talent — a superior education — breadth 
of mind, and depth of soul, which, combined with an agreeable address, great 
energy and force of character, must make him successful — and that largely. 

This law dream, however, soon ended. His "first love," 
who had never ceased to follow him in his truantings from her, 
soon began to beckon him with the privileged fervor which be- 
longs to that estate, and he could no longer resist her blandish- 
ments. He had gained — if not all he strove and hoped for — 
priceless wealth of knowledge in his legal studies, which, to 
him, was sufficient and all remunerative. 

There is no doubt that he would have been a successful 
pleader if he had continued at the Bar. But the invitations of 
friends ; the pressure it might be of still more weighty matters 
— (for we speak entirely without authority upon this subject) — 
as well as his early love for the medical profession, induced 
him to return to it, and give up his life as a sacrifice to its 
duties. An unseen hand — visible only to the eye of faith — 
there was in this guidance of the wanderer back to the profes- 
sion wherein lay the true sources of his power. He also had a 
mission to perform, of which, happily for himself, he was uncon- 
scious to the last. Hence, he never presumed upon it, as so 
many do, who fallaciously imagine that such is their case, but 
he labored on with heart and soul, and the full, broad, deep 
strength of a right healthy man until his course was run. 

During the intervals of business, when he was not engaged 
in curing the bodies of his fellow-men, he was earnestly devoting 
himself to a proper understanding and application of those in- 
tellectual remedies which the moral reformers of his time were 
propounding for the cure of the social estate. He was an active 
member of the " Good Templars," and belonged to the Chicago 



222 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Lodge. He was an eloquent speaker, a good lecturer, and a 
ready writer ; and his friends were frequently charmed with 
the productions of his pen, as he travelled from place to place. 

We now come to a new era in his brief and chequered life. 
When the war clouds of 1861 burst upon us, he Avas among. the 
first to give up the comforts of home, and rally to the national 
standard. Here was a wide field opened to his active benevo- 
lence and enterprise — and here, he could best discharge his 
duties as a patriot. Going to Springfield for examination, he 
was one of the few who, at that time, took a first-class certifi- 
cate, and was at once commissioned as Surgeon of the 22d 
Regiment Illinois Infantry. 

On returning to Chicago, his friends, always ready to 
strengthen his hands and sustain his high purposes, presented 
him Avith a handsome sword and belt, accompanying the gift 
with the following welcome and cheering words : 

Dr. George Coatsworth, — Allow us to make you this slight present as a 
token of our esteem for your character and talents. Called from civil life, as 
you arc, by the exigencies of our common country, we, for our part, know of 
uo better way of expressing our regard for you than by confiding to your 
hands this sword — an emblem of the power which defends our common homes, 
etc., etc. 

The Doctor's regiment was first sent to Bird's Point, where 
the surrounding marshes and miasma caused such extreme de- 
bility in the' army, that many physicians were entirely unfitted 
for duty. Dr. Coatsworth, however, was of so strong and vigor- 
ous a constitution, that he was not in the least aifected by the 
poisonous emanations of the locality. He undertook and ac- 
complished the work of three sufficient men, struggling bravely 
through it, under a torrid sun and surfeiting atmosphere. In 
vain his brother officers admonished him to "beware!" — telling 
him that his turn would come next if he did not husband his 
resources — always ending with the kind reminder, " We cannot 
do without you;" — duty was the only mandate which he obeyed. 
Such services as he rendered could not be hidden. They had 
a public as well as a private recognition, which nerved him, if 
possible, to still greater activity. The Chicago Journal, speak- 
ing of that time and circumstance, says : 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 223 

The liospitals over which Dr. Coatsworth has charge, are models in their 
neatness and general management. 

The Medical Board of Inspectors reported the same hospitals 
as the finest and best attended of any on the Point. His 
supervision was over all his Avork, and his attention to his 
patients incessant. 

But the strongest man can be bowed down, and so he found 
it. A slow typhoid fever now seized upon his manly frame, 
and for a while, there was a life and death struo-gle between 
them, the fever being at last thrown and conquered, and the 
Doctor once more on duty. He was soon destined to see a 
more active service than ever he had yet witnessed and en- 
dured. The engagements of Farmington and Belmont intro- 
duced him at once to the shambles of the battle-field, AvKere he 
became acquainted at first hand with the most fearful and 
bloody mutilations to which his practiced art had hitherto been 
applied. He was so successful here in his treatment even of 
the worst cases, that he was soon afterwards — 19th February, 
1862 — assigned Post Surgeon at Paducah, Ky. Here he had 
ample scope for the exercise both of skill and kindness. All 
the severely wounded from the battles of Fort Donelson and 
Pittsburg Landing were placed under his immediate care. His 
skill in surgery was acknowledged by the Medical Director and 
others of the profession, to be unexcelled by any practitioner in 
the U. S. service. Here he won not only professional laurels, but 
the hearts of all who knew him. And indeed, no man ever more 
truly or worthily deserved gratitude from those under his charge 
than he. Night seldom brought repose to his weary frame and 
faculties. After contending all day with disease and the arch- 
enemy. Death ; after putting forth against them all the armories 
of his poAver and knowledge^ — all the energies of his indomitable 
will, and the magnetisms of his intellect, he would pass the night 
also at the bedside of the dying, comforting and cheering them 
in their last moments, until the trembling spirit left its frail 
tenement to find its way across the troubled waters of the ever- 
present and mysterious Jordan. 

His endurance was immense. He has been known to stand 
by the surgical table in the hospital and operate continuously 



224 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

for three successive days and nights, with but one hour's rest 
in twenty-four ! This was killing work, it is true, but the 
men also were dying — would have died but for his kindly-cruel 
knife. The Chicago Journal speaks of him and his exertions 
at this time in a most friendly manner : 

The central hospital at Paducah is under the very able management of Dr. 
Coatsworth, who is a man of great executive ability and medical skill. It is 
but fair to state, that the wounded upon whom he has operated have all, 
more or less, recovered — the army rule being, for the most part, that one 
operation is equal to one death! Most of the Doctor's patients are getting 
along finely, and are rapidly recovering. A better man could not have been 
chosen for the place which he so faithfully and so admirably occupies. 

The New Albany Ledger, of about the same date, said : 

Dr. George Coatsworth, who was transferred from his regiment on account 
of his medical skill, and is now in charge of Paducah Hospital, is a man of 
more than ordinary talent, and is admirably fitted, in every respect, for the 
responsible place which he now holds. A more suitable person could not 
have been chosen from the whole division. 

And such, indeed, was the universal testimony. 

After four months of laborious service at this station, he was 
recalled to his regiment, and went through the exhausting toils 
of a midsummer campaign in the interior of Alabama. Soon 
after the evacuation of Corinth, he resigned, for the sole pur- 
pose of recuperating his health, which had been much shattered 
by his long labors and marches. He returned once more to 
his home in Chicago, where his numerous acquaintances gave 
him a .warm and hearty welcome. 

Through the persuasion of many of his old friends, and a 
conviction that he had not yet paid his full debt to his adopted 
country, he was induced to enter the service once more, and, on 
the 4th of September, 1862, was commissioned as Surgeon of 
the 88th (2d Board of Trade) Regiment Illinois Infantry — Col. 
F. T. Sherman commanding. The Chicago Tribune notices his 
appointment in the following terms : 

Col. Stokes has appointed our fellow-citizen, George Coatsworth, M. D., 
Surgeon of the 2d Board of Trade Regiment of U. S. Volunteers. In this 
appointment Col. Stokes has not only given new evidences of his fitness for 
his position, but has gratified the wishes of a large portion of our community. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 225 

Dr. Coatsworth has been in the service for fifteen months in the position of 
Surgeon of the 22d Regiment Illinois Volunteers. At Belmont, he was 
regimental surgeon, and after the battles of Fort Donelson and Shiloh, he 
was detached from his regiment and placed in charge of the general hospital 
at Paducah, Ky., when the most severely wounded of those bloody battles 
were put in his care. After remaining there three months, he rejoined his 
regiment, and was at Monterey, Farmington, Corinth and Boonville, Ala. 
During all of this time, he was constantly engaged in the duties of his pro- 
fession, and there are few surgeons connected with our army who have done 
as much service to the country as Dr. C. 

We congratulate the officers and soldiers of the regiment upon this judicious 
selection of their chief medical officer. 

Entering upon his duties with renewed health and ripened 
professional experience, the old intellectual fire and generosity 
of nature, which had marked his previous career, were soon 
again apparent, and he became the idol of his regiment. In 
the battle of Perryville, where he was under a long and heavy 
fire, he displayed much coolness and courage ; and his efforts 
were untiring to relieve all who suff'ered in the conflict. Officers 
and men were all one to him on the great levelling platform of 
the battle-field — and he made no distinction betAveen them. In 
a letter to a friend, he says : 

To heal and sustain an officer in the hour of need, is commendable — but 
how much greater is the humanity that cheers and prepares for battle the 
poor friendless private, who offers up his life upon the altar of his country, 
and committing his soul to God, marches at another's will and bidding, to the 
cannon's mouth for his destiny! 

Dr. Coatsworth was everywhere complimented upon the neat- 
ness, order and cleanliness of his hospitals ; and at Perryville, 
Gen. Sill, commander of division, said that he had the best 
regulated hospital he had seen in the service, and he recom- 
mended it as a model to others. 

After hunting guerrilla bands four months, and passing 
through one of the most toilsome marches that has been made 
during this wicked rebellion, the regiment was at length sent 
to Nashville, Tenn., where they reasonably expected a short 
respite from a sod pillow and uncooked rations. Alas for their 
hopes ! The bloody battle of Stone River comm"fenced immedi- 
ately, and raged for days with all the fury, as the soldiers 



226 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

expressed it, of a "Hell broke loose!" As the men were 
swept from the ranks like grass before the scythe, Dr. Coats- 
Avorth was in their midst, binding up the broken wounds and 
cheering the spirits of the mangled soldiers, who looked to him 
as their only salv^ation. Heart-rending was the sight to witness 
those fine manlj fellows, who, but a moment before, were in the 
full glory of manhood, the blood-rush of battle on their cheeks, 
unconquerable courage in their hearts, and each hand mailed 
for victory, thus suddenly, at the blast of a trumpet, cut down 
by an invisible enemy, helpless, torn asunder by unspeakable 
agonies, crying in their blood for help, and crying, alas ! too 
often in vain ! Dr. Coatsworth saw thousands of such sights 
as this, and he was always ready to help the poor sufferers to 
the best of his ability. 

At the battle of Stone River, there was for days scarcely a 
cessation in the roar and thunder of the warfare. Now near, 
now distant, it rose, ebbing and flowing, heaving and surging, 
like a vast sea of fire and flame ; the cries of the trodden and 
wounded drowned in the madness and clamor of the conflicting 
hosts and the rolling of the mighty drums. The Doctor was 
on the very edge of the battle, his ears appalled every now 
and then by hideous death yells, and his heart smitten by be- 
seeching eyes appealing to him not in vain, so long as his 
strength lasted. For forty-eight hours did this monstrous phle- 
getlion of human strife and passion rage and boil in the depths 
of the Stone River valley ; whilst Dr. Coatsworth, all that time 
without food or rest, continued his almost superhuman labors, 
fascinated by them, drawn from the relief of one poor soul, only 
to put his merciful hands upon some other equally as necessitous 
and importunate — and so on, as it seemed to him, in an endless 
succession of shattered and mutilated bodies. Still he never 
stopped nor faltered. Like one fulfilling some dreadful destiny, 
with no hope nor rest in the background of the future, so he 
worked until his strong frame gave way, and he sank, utterly 
exhausted, into that pitiless grave from which he had rescued 
so many others during this tremendous battle. 

Long will tlie tragedy of his death remain in the minds of 
those who witnessed the sacrifice ! It is to us one of tlie 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 227 

grandest, most touching and divine pictures which tl^e war has 
contributed to humanity and to art. 

The greatest agony of his dying moments seemed to be that 
his idolized wife could not be near him to minister to his wants; 
she who, to quote his oft-repeated language, "had been to him 
the stimulus to all high and noble ambition ; the benefactor, 
and G;uidino; star of his life." 

Thus died on the 9th of January, 1863, one of the noblest 
heroes of this cruel rebellion. 

The following resolutions, expressive, to some extent, of the 
feelings of his regiment on his decease, were sent to his l;c- 
reft family : 

The officers of the 88th Regiment lUiuois Volunteers, deeply feeling the 
loss of their Surgeon, Dr. Geo. Coatsworth, who died of pneumonia, at Mur- 
froesboro, Tenn., January 9th, 1863, were called together by Col. Sherman, 
when a committee, consisting of Lieut. Col. Chadbourne, Capt. Sheridan, 
Capt. McClurg, and Lieut. Bigelow, was selected to draft resolutions expres- 
sive of their feelings. Lieut. Col. Chadbourne, on presenting the resolutions, 
remarked, that he did not feel that the occasion was an ordinary one; that he 
was opposed to the usual way of calling meetings and passing the customary 
resolutions. He believed that every one present felt the loss of a true friend 
in the death of Dr. Coatsworth. The resolutions j^assed were as follows: 

Whereas, Providence has seen fit to remove from us our Surgeon, George Coatsworth, 
by death — liesatved. That we, the officers of tliis regiment, tender to his family our heart- 
felt sympathy in this their sudden bereavement. We bear willing tribute to his many 
excellencies of character and his greatness of head and heart. To us his death is an irre- 
parable loss, and to the profession of which he was so able a member. In our friend we 
recognize a man of more than ordinary ability and attainments. Our respect and love for 
him increased as a continued daily association with him developed those traits of character 
which a less intimate acquaintance would fail to di.'^cover. We i'eel that not only has the 
regiment, by his death, lost a true friend and skillful surgeon, but the profession one of 
its clearest thinkers, most devoted students and accomplished operators. Hut; though the 
loss is hard to bear, we find relief iu the fact, that he died in the noblest way a man can 
die— at his post, in the laborious and faithful performance of his duty. 

F. T. SHERMAN, Chairman. 
J. Seymour Ballard, Secretary. 

Among the most touching reflections upon his death, is the 
following letter, forwarded from the camp of the brave 88th to 
his bereaved wife : 

Headquarters 88th Regiment Illinois Volunteers, ) 

Camp Bradley, near Murfreesboro, Tenn., Jan. 11th, 1863. ^ 

Mrs. Dr. Coatsworth, — A,llow us to present to you a copy of resolutions 
passed at a meeting of the officers of this regiment, ex])ressing our respect 



228 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

and love for your deceased husband, and our deep regret at a loss which we 
must mourn in common with. We feel a delicacy in intruding ujjon -the 
sacreduess of your grief; but, as we take pleasure in being the keepers of his 
later reputation, we feel ourselves privileg-ed to approach you with our heart- 
felt testimony. And let us assure you, that these resolutions are couched in 
no idle words merely, but rather that we deeply feel every word in them, and 
much more than we expressed. Dr. Coatsworth had been with us for some 
months, but we had just begun truly to know him. Every day as it passed 
showed us more and more the keenness of his intellect, the kindness of his 
heart, the genial nature of his disposition, and the strength of his character. 
The future opened up before him in all the brightness of its possibilities, and 
he had long resolved upon a life of earnest labor and its attendant rewards 
and honors. But this was not to be. The clouds seemed only rolled away 
for a moment^ that his sun might set in its natural brilliancy. At the opening 
of the battle of Murfreesboro, he entered on his labors with that earnest zeal 
which always characterized his devotion to his profession. Night and day he 
labored unceasingly. Rest he forsook, and scarcely paused for necessary food. 
For forty-eight hours he thus labored, forgetful of himself, and only anxious 
to relieve the sufferings of others, until even his mighty strength gave way, 
and he sank into that grave from which he had rescued so many. It was for 
others to die on the field of battle by the bullets of the enemy; he died no 
less gloriously at the post of duty. 

Again, let us offer you our most sincere and heartfelt sympathy. As you 
mourn the most devoted of husbands, so we mourn an endeared friend, and, 
through his mastery of his profession, an invaluable protector. 

We invoke for you, in your bereavement, the guidance a«d protection of 
that Providence who doeth all things well. 

We remain, Madam, very sincerely and respectfully, 

F. T. Sherman, Col. 88th 111. Inft. 
A. S. Chadbourne, Lieut. Col. 

G. W. Chandler, Major. 
A. 0. Rankin, Surgeon. 
J. C. Thomas, Chaplain. 

And all other officers of the regiment. 

On hearing of her husband's illness, his devoted wife set out 
with all possible speed to reach him. The road was infested 
with guerrilla bands ; rail tracts were being torn up, boats 
burned, and women injured ; but her love was strong, her 
courage great ; and alone in the night, she undertook the 
hazardous journey, resolved that no obstacle should keep her 
from her husband's side. But alas ! before she reached him, 
stranger hands had closed his eyes, and angel spirits had borne 
him hence. The sun of her day had set in early morn. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 229 

The remains were forwarded from Murfreesboro to his home 
in Chicago, where, owing to interruptions caused by bushrangers, 
they were not received until two weeks after his decease. His 
many friends in the city awaited them with every demonstration 
of respect and sorrow. The profession of Chicago took notice 
of his death in the following words : 

At a meeting of physicians, who were called together for the 
purpose of drafting resolutions expressive of their regret. Prof. 
N. S. Davis said, that " it gave him pleasure to state, that Dr. 
George Coatsworth was a very highly esteemed member of the 
Chicago Medical Society, and while living, enjoyed the confi- 
dence and esteem not only of its members, but of the profession 
generally ; that in scientific and professional attainments, as 
well as high social qualities, he had but few equals in the^ pro- 
fession of our city." The following resolutions were then 
adopted : 

Whereas, George Coatsworth, M. D., formerly a member of this society, 
died while in the noble discharge of his duty as a surgeon in the volunteer 
army of Tennessee; therefore, Resolved, That in the death of Dr. Coatsworth, 
this society has lost one of its most valuable members, and the army one of ita 
most skillful and efficient medical officers. Resolved, That we sincerely sym- 
pathize with the family and friends of the deceased in their deep afHiction. 
Resolved, That a copy of the foregoing preamble and resolutions be furnished 
to the city papers and to the widow of the deceased. 

Dr. Allen, of the army, wrote : 

It was with deep feelings of sorrow he heard of the death of his esteemed 
brother Coatsworth. Pie was a man of rare professional acquirements, and 
brilliant scientific attainments. Gifted with a massive brain; he had stored 
it industriously and with care. He was a cheerful companion, a faithful 
friend — a man who could chain the attention of his friends for hours with 
sallies of wit and eloquence — a man of broad and generous views, and known 
as one of the best surgeons in the whole army. 

Mr. Simmons, Medical Director, said — 

There was nothing mediocre about Dr. Coatsworth. His executive ability 
was much above par; and that, during the many years of his connection with 
the U. S. Army, he had met with no mind superior to that of his young friend. 

Dr. T. R. Austin, Surgeon in charge of Post Paducah, Ky., 
wrote of him : 



230 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

It was my good fortune to become acquainted with the late Surgeon, Goo. 
Coatswortli, while in Paducah, he having been appointed to the command of 
the Central Hospital of that place. Dr. Coatsworth labored in that position 
with the most unremitting ardor. Exceedingly skillful in his profession, an 
expert and scientific operator, he won the love and admiration of all his 
associates, and endeared himself to those who came under his care, by his 
kind attention to their necessities. Thoroughly versed in scientific lore, he 
was also a laborious student, and a close observer of all that would tend to 
advance surgical knowledge. He was also practically conversant with his 
duties, and discharged them nobly. And although we cannot understand 
why one so eminent in his profession, so highly gifted in intellectual attain- 
ments, and whose mind was so richly stored with professional and literary 
knowledge, should so early be removed from our midst; yet He, who is his 
own interpreter, will soon make it plain. I feel deeply that I have lost a dear 
friend and brother, with whom I had often taken counsel, and whom I had 
hoped to meet frequently again upon earth. While we grieve for his loss, let 
us remember all that was good, ennobling and great in his character; how 
many sorrows he soothed, how many tears he wiped away, and how many suf- 
ferers he relieved. Professionally, Dr. Coatsworth had but few equals; socially, 
no superiors. He had faults, (and who has none?) for he was mortal; but they 
were few, and he had many virtues. 

Through the entreaty of a brother, and a regard for an aged 
and doting mother, the remains were taken to the maternal 
home for interment, it not being known until after his burial, 
that, in the event of his death, Dr. Coatsworth wished to be 
placed in Rosehill Cemetery, near his city home, where a fitting 
monument will be erected to his memory. 

Funeral services were held over his remains in Chicago, 
previous to their removal East. On this occasion. Rev. Dr. 
Swazey, who officiated, said: 

Our esteemed friend, whose great loss we deplore, has finished his course, 
and all that is left of his once manly form lies before us, "sunk in that little 
measure." His bereaved wife is sorely grieved; her heart is rent asunder! 
but she aud we also are comforted not only with the thought that God, the 
merciful Father, who uoteth even the falling of a sparrow, has brought this 
grief upon us, but that our beloved friend died in the service of his country. 
He literally laid down his life for others. There is nothing that makes Ufe so 
noble, so grand! His name will bear this lasting honor, that, while many are 
living ingloriously at ease, he gave his life for the bruised, the wounded, and 
for all who love our country! Much of the spirit of our Saviour is manifested 
in this man's death, aud great will surely be the reward. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 231 

After proper services, the remains were conducted to the 
cars, and in charge of his brother, taken East, where a large 
funeral took place. 

And thus crowned with the glory of a ripe humanity — all his 
duties nobly done — has passed away forever from the earth one 
of our best and bravest citizen patriots. He is numbered with 
the vast army of martyrs, who, from all the ranks and conditions 
of men, have gone forth at the summons of their country, to 
rescue the Republic from the hands of rebels and barbarians. 
Of a comparative lowly estate, like a million of others, he has 
risen by the grandeurs of liis character, to a high moral posi- 
tion, and his name and memory are embalmed in the immortal 
record of his time. 

" Only the actions of the just, 
Smell sweet, and blossom in the dust!" 



232 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



GENERAL RANSOM. 

Brigadier General Thomas Edwin Greenfield Ransom 
was born at Norwich, Windsor county, Vermont, on the 29th 
day of November, 1834. His father, Col. Truman B. Ransom, 
was born in Woodstock, Windsor county, Vt., in 1803, and was 
for some time President of the Norwich University in that State. 
In this school the military element was made prominent. The 
students were regularly trained in the manual of arms, and 
obtained great proficiency. They made a tour, as far as 
Boston, in the summer of 1846, and attracted much attention. 
They were called Noi'wich Cadets. Thomas was then about 
thirteen years of age. The military element of the school must 
have made a deep impression upon the susceptible nature of 
young Ransom. 

On the breaking out of the Mexican war, his father promptly 
placed himself at the head of the 9th New England Regiment 
of U. S. Volunteers, and went to the field. All New England, 
howsoever divided the people may have been as to the justice of 
the war, awards him honor, as a gallant leader, worthy even of 
a better place. After participating in several battles, and in 
every instance displaying distinguished ability, he fell at the 
storming of Chepultepec, September 13, 1847, which made a 
deep impression upon the public mind when the sad announce- 
ment of his death appeared. The qualities of the son Avere, in 
a conspicuous degree, those of the father. Col. Ransom had 
more of the military officer in his demeanor than the General, 
had more sternness of manner, but iii all true traits Avhich 
render a man dear to those who know him best, they were 
much alike. The mother of the General is still living, and is 
represented as a lady of high endowments and culture. 

Gen. Ransom removed to Peru, Lasalle co., Illinois, in the 
spring of 1851, and in the fall of 1855, with his uncle, G. W. 
Gilson, became interested in the land agency firm of A. J. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 233 

Galloway & Co., at Chicago ; and, at the same time, did busi- 
ness in the firm name of Bell & Ransom. 

At the announcement, in April, 1861, that Fort Sumter had 
been fired upon and the national flag dishonored, young Ran- 
som sprang to the defence of the Union. Between Saturday 
night and Wednesday morning, he raised a company for the 11th 
Illinois Infantry; at 5 o'clock of the latter day, had the men 
in Springfield, and before he slept, he and his company were 
accepted into the service. Upon the organization of the regiment 
a few days after, he was elected Major. In June following, he 
was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. He was commissioned 
Colonel a few days before the battle of Shiloh, to date from 
July 16, 1862, the day of the surrender of Fort Donelson, vice 
W. H. L. Wallace, promoted to a Brigadier Generalship. 

At Shiloh, he led the regiment through the thickest of that 
bloody fight, and though wounded in the head early in the en- 
gagement, remained with his command throughout the day. 
He assisted Gen. McClernand in rallying an Ohio regiment that 
Avas falling back on his right, and forced them to move forward 
with his own troops upon a rebel battery. In the official report 
of this battle, Gen. McClernand spoke of Col. Ransom, at a 
critical moment, "performing prodigies of valor, .though reeling 
in his saddle, and streaming with blood from a serious wound." 

In the spring of 1863, he was elevated to the rank of Briga- 
dier General, to date from Nov. 29, (his birthday,) 1862, for dis- 
tinguished services at Shiloh, and at the siege of Corinth. In the 
memorable siege of Vicksburg, he commanded a brigade, and 
won fresh laurels, as he had in every other branch of the mili- 
tary service with which he had been united. The fortifications 
which he built during' that siege still remain, and bear his hon- 
ored name. 

Gen. Ransom was connected with the famous Red River Ex- 
pedition. His coolness and daring at the unhappy battle of 
Sabine Cross Roads, saved that branch of the army which he 
commanded from complete and overwhelming disaster. 

Gen. Ransom was four times wounded: At Charleston, Mo., 
Aug. 19, 1861 ; at Fort Donelson, Feb. 15, 1862 ; at Shiloh, April 
6, 1862 ; and at Sabine Cross Roads, Louisiana, April 8, 1864. 

15 



234 MARTYRS AND HEROES OE ILLINOIS. 

The wound received at Sabine Cross Roads was severe, and 
brought him to Chicago, where he received the congratulations 
of a grateful public. He needed rest. 'He had been in active 
service continually, in Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missis- 
sippi, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas; but on the 27th 
of July, even before his limb was quite restored, feeling that the 
exigencies of the cause in Northern Georgia demanded his ser- 
vices, he returned to the front, where he best liked to be. 
Through the remainder of the summer he was in good health, 
and took an active part in the duties of that momentous cam- 
paign. He was in the battle of Jonesboro, his command form- 
ing a part of the left wing, and was one of the rejoicing host 
that entered the city of Atlanta soon after it was abandoned by 
the opposing army. 

Ready for new victories, as yet not seriously harmed by lead 
or steel, he, to whom death had so often looked but not yet cal- 
led away, was now to receive the summons which sooner or later 
comes to us all. 

The early part of October found him sick. His disease 
assumed the form of dysentery. As it was needful for his com- 
mand to proceed to Rome, he started with it, and though the 
disease was constantly weakening him, he insisted on going for- 
ward with the troops. Sometimes he rode at the head of the 
column in an ambulance, taking the saddle only as the advance 
guard became engaged with the enemy. Generals Sherman 
and Howard, and their respective medical directors, suggested 
to him the propriety of allowing himself to be reported sick, and 
thus relieve himself of duty ; but his decision Avas unalterable ; 
^^ I will stay with tny command until I leave in my coffin," was 
his final answer to all such suggestions. On the 26th of Octo- 
ber, still moving forward, there was a decided change in him 
for the worse. His death was hourly expected, but his vigorous 
constitution and strong will carried him through that sudden 
relapse, so that on the morning of the 27th he took his place in 
the ambulance, and bore the fatigue of the day remarkably 
well. The next day he was worse again — too ill to ride any 
longer, and so his comrades placed him upon a litter, and with a 
regiment for an escort, they bore their beloved General forward. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 235 

Light were their feet, but heavy were the hearts of his brave 
men that day. The next morning they resumed their march, 
but at 11 o'clock the cokimn was halted. The young leader 
could go no further. His precious life was fast ebbing away. 
The Surgeon informed him that he could not survive but a few 
hours. The announcement did not alarm him in the least. Look- 
ing up, with a cheerful expression, the brave warrior said: "J 
am not afraid to die ; I liave met death too often to he afraid 
of it nozv.'" His mind was clear and vigorous. Calling his Aid- 
de-Camp to him, he delivered to his care several messages of 
love for relatives and friends, gave directions as to private busi- 
ness, and w^aited cheerfully, with triumphing Christian trust, 
for the rapidly approaching hour. At forty-five minutes past 2 
p. M., Oct. 29th, when near Rome, Ga., his spirit took its flight to 
the God who gave it, uttering, to the latest moment, words of love 
and happiness. He was twenty-nine years and eleven months 
old. Few lives, though numbering threescore years and ten, 
have exhibited more maturity of character, or rendered larger 
service to mankind. Among his last words was this remark- 
able sentence: '^ I have tried to do my duty, and have 7io fears 
for myself after death." 

As soon as the sad event Avas known in Chicago, a meeting 
of the General's friends and admirers Avas convened at the Tre- 
mont House, when a dispatch from Chattanooga was read by 
Norman Williams, Esq., intimating that the remains were on 
the way to this city. Thereupon, appropriate committees Avere 
appointed to make the necessary arrangements for a public j 
funeral to the young martyr hero, on the 6th November, 1864. 

The body lay in state at Bryan Hall, and for four hours the 
tide of life flowed steadily and solemnly by the catafalco. The 
hall was draped in mourning ; floral wreaths and immortelles 
strewed the coffin ; the General's good SAVord lay across his 
breast, and the flag, under which he fought and died, was flung 
over the narroAv house. 

The funeral serAdce at the hall, consisting simply of the im- 
pressive ritual of the Episcopal Church, Avas pronounced by the 
Rev. R. H. Clarkson, D. D. ; upon the conclusion of Avhich, he 
delivered a short address, paying a glowing tribute to the 



236 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

memory of the General. Dm-ing these exercises, the various 
divisions of the funeral procession were forming in the places 
assigned them. Masons, with their emblems draped in mourn- 
ing, and sable banners fluttering in the breeze, were wheeling 
slowly into line ; squads of soldiery were fileing through the 
street, to the strains of the "Dead March;" the firemen took 
up their position; and at 2 o'clock, the funeral pageant com- 
menced its march. Solemn and slow tolled the city bell — 
minute guns were fired — flags throughout the city were dis- 
played at half-mast — and November's leaden sky and sighing 
wind added befltting gloom to the scene, as if nature itself 
were touched with human sympathy. On the procession arriv- 
ing at the old cemetery, a detachment of the Veteran Reserve 
Corps fired a salute over the body, and Avith Masonic rites the 
remains were deposited in a vault, to await a fitting receptacle 
at Rosehill. 

The following is an extract from an obituary sermon, delivered 
by Rev. W. H. Ryder, D. D., Pastor of St. Paul's Universalist 
Church of Chicago, at the request of a number of the friends 
of the lamented General, taking, for his text, 1 Sam., ii, 30 — 
"■ Them that honor me I will honor :" 

As I see the patriot hero borne along the rough highway, mile after mile, 
upon the shoulders of his comrades, asking for no greater privilege than the 
opportunity of continuing to serve his country, yet realizing, as he must have 
done, that he was rapidly nearing the shore of that undiscovered sea that 
rolls round all the earth; as I hear, in imagination, his cheerful words, look 
into his sunny face, and listen to his testimony to the value of the Christian 
iieligion, interpreted in the hght of the divine goodness; as I think of -what 
he was, so young, so promising, and yet so crowned with the confidence of his 
countrymen, and so esteemed by all who knew him — it has seemed to me that 
the death was not only befitting the life, but rounds his brief but brilliant 
career into an example that must exert a salutary influence upon thousands 
now living, and is worthy of being placed high in the list of those names 
which the historians of this war for the defense of the National Union, will 
ppeserve for the admiration of future generations. 

We shall not attempt an elaborate analysis of the character of the deceased. 
Certain of his prominent traits, those most conspicuous and instructive, are 
all that we shall attempt to indicate. 

1. General Ransom was retiring and unostentatious. There was no strut 
about him. He was simple in his manners. Quiet, unobtrusive. In a 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 237 

company of gentlemen he would not liave been selected as a military man, 
according to the people's estimate. His power was always in reserve for 
occasions — and the greater the occasion, the deeper the peril, the more capa- 
ble did he show himself to be. Ambitious — meaning thereby desire of power 
or eminence — he was not. His ambition was to honor his country — the 
service — to quit himself as a man should, acting in such a presence and such 
an hour. "Whether General Ransom would have risen to the rank of a great 
leader — i. e., whether he would have gained a still higher grade, and tilled it 
with the same distinguished success which graced all the positions he occu- 
pied, is now a question which can never be decisively answered, and which, 
perhaps, it is not worth while to tarry long and consider. One thing is quite 
certain: had he been the chief in command of the Red River Expedition, that 
blundering campaign, if undertaken at all, would have had a very different 
issue. And it is a pretty safe rule, that he who does best when most is 
demanded, is capable of doing more than, he has ever yet done. 

2. General Ransom was a kind, pleasant, sympathetic man. He had a 
sunny face, a clear, cheerful eye. He attached people to him; they loved him, 
for he was good; they honored him, for he was brave. There are those here 
who knew the kindness of his heart, and who loved him with all the reverence 
of grateful affection. A dutiful son, an appreciative relative, a faithful 
friend, a patriot hero, he deserves well of his countrymen, and will long be 
honored in the sanctuaries of a thousand hearts. 

3. General Ransom's patriotism and high moral tone proceeded from con- 
viction — were the outgrowth of inward stability. The springs of his action 
were deep. Hence he was true in danger, and uniformly prepared for the 
duty when it came. Hence, also, he did not degenerate into the temptations 
which beset the service, or lose that strength which comes from Christian 
integrity. These traits would have served him in any calling. And had he 
lived to the allotted age of man, it is more than probable he would have held 
fast to the principles which distinguished his youth, and ended his career in a 
life of the largest usefulness. 



238 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



MAJOR BOWEN. 

Major Rodney S. Bowen, severely wounded at the battle of 
Franklin, Tenn., 29th November, 1864, died at oiBcers' hospi- 
tal, Nashville, 3d December following, aged 31 years. 

Major Bowen was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., and the 
only surviving. child of Dr. A. W. and Mrs. Mary C. Bowen, 
Avho removed with him to the present site of Joliet, Illinois, in 
1834. Constitutionally feeble, he was almost wholly deprived 
of attendance at school ; yet, with his mother's aid, and an 
aptitude for learning, he acquired intelligence and a fair educa- 
tion. In his youth he was noted for manliness and a retiring 
disposition. 

In 1859, he removed to Wilmington, 111., and was, for a few 
years, engaged in business ; but his health failing, he sought 
the labors of out-door life. In 1855, he married Frances, 
daughter of the late Dr. Todd, of Rockville, 111., and, at the 
breaking out of the rebellion, was living comfortably on his 
farm at Wilmington. With restored health, he felt it a duty 
he owed his country to assist her in this her hour of need. 
Brought up with the care and tenderness of an only child, he 
was by public opinion exempt from the first call for 300,000 
volunteers, as being unequal to the hardships and privations of 
a camp life, yet his patriotism overrode all minor objections. 
He said he " should feel ashamed to sleep in a comfortable bed 
at home while so many thousands were lying on the ground 
deprived of the comforts of life for his protection." 

Leaving family and business in the midsummer of 1862, he 
obtained permission from Gov. Yates to raise a company, was 
chosen its commander, and in about thirty days was mustered 
into the 100th Regiment Illinois Volunteers as its senior Cap- 
tain. With the earnestness which characterized all his actions 
he entered upon his new duties, determined to serve his country 
faithfully and well. In this he persevered to the end. In 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 239 

August, 1862, the regiment was ordered to Louisville, Ky., 
under the lamented Col. Bartleson, to avert the threatened raid 
of Gen. Bragg, of the Confederate army, and followed that rebel 
over half of the State of Kentucky, compelling him to retreat 
to Middle Tennessee. In this, one of the hardest campaigns 
of the war, when nearly one-half of the new recruits succumbed 
to the severe marching and oppressive heat of September, Capt. 
Bowen was ever at the post of duty, and earned the love and 
respect of his men for his humanity and kindness. 

At Bardstown, Ky., Gen. Hascall rode up in front of the 
100th Regiment, and, addressing them, said: "You are about 
to meet the enemy, and if you ru7i, I have a regiment (pointing 
to the 26th Ohio) placed in your rear to shoot you down." 
Capt. Bowen, heading the skirmish line, ordered the advance, 
in expectation of a fight within a short distance. The men, 
biting their lips with wounded pride, sprang forward at the 
command, nor did they stop for fences, thickets or swamps, 
until the rebel cavalry retreated out of sight : but, though 
respecting Gen. Hascall for his bravery, they did not soon 
forget his imputation upon their untried courage. 

At Lavergne, the 100th Regiment was highly complimented. 
Its position was, as usual, on the left, and companies A and B 
were in the skirmish line : their charge through the town swept 
everything before it, and the regiment received the commenda- 
tion of the General in command. It was again in the thickest 
of the fight at the battle of Stone River, losing several officers 
and about forty men killed and wounded. 

Capt. Bowen continued in command of his company during 
the fighting from Murfreesboro to Chattanooga ; was at the 
taking of the latter place, and in the terrible fight at Chicka- 
mauga, where Colonel Bartleson was taken prisoner. At the 
storming of Mission Ridge, he was acting Major and severely 
wounded, but, being helped upon a horse, he did not leave the 
field until the victory was complete. 

Joining his regiment again at Loudon, East Tennessee, he 
was in all the battles from Chattanooga to the crossing of the 
Chattahooche river, near Atlanta, where he was disabled by 
severe inflammation of his eyes and ordered to Lookout Moun- 



240 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

tain Hospital. "His coolness in battle, and his calmness under 
fire," says his commanding officer, "were heroically displayed 
in the battles of Resaca, Rockyface, Newhope Church, and 
Kenesaw Mountain." 

On all occasions he did his duty as a soldier, but the devas- 
tation of war, and particularly the wanton destruction to private 
property, were repugnant to his instincts. In a letter to his 
mother, in October, 1864, from Chattanooga, he says : 

The yard iu which we are encamped, shows signs of having once been filled 
with choice shrubbery. There is a niaguificent vine of the Eglantine species 
still showing signs of life over the front door of the mansion — our dining table 
stands upon what was once a bed of flowers — a peach tree, that was capable 
of bearing bushels of fruit, serves us for a hitching post — a few honeysuckles 
still remain to mark the paths — and our cook hangs his wiping cloth upon a 
shrub of some choice kind unknown to me; and, although the owner is said 
to be rebellious, I could not have been the first to trample upon such a place. 
The remembrance of several such spots that you have spent time, taste and 
labor upon, and that I have occasionally assisted in forming, will always pre- 
vent me from laying ruthless hands upon what are among the pleasant things 
of life. The soldier first takes the fence to cook his coffee, only one or two 
pickets or boards — the next soldier, another; and before you are aware, there 
is no protection left. Then some cai'eless teamster comes crushing along with 
his six mules and heavy government wagon, and the iron enters the soul of the 
chivalry. They have sown the wind, and are now reaping the whirlwind. 
They have sown the dragon's teeth, and the armed men that spring up are 
now tearing out their vitals. 

At Atlanta, Capt. Bowen received his Major's commission, 
and continued with his regiment until he received his mortal 
wound while in charge of the rear guard at the battle of 
Franklin, Tenn. 

Naturally of a retiring and religious turn of mind, he had 
long been a firm and consistent member and one of the wardens 
of the Episcopal Church of Wilmington. 

A thorough conviction that his country needed his services, 
was his only motive for enlisting in her cause, and the final 
crushing out of the rebellion the end at which he aimed. In 
j the language of one of his fellow officers, " he lived a Christian 
and a gentleman, and died a soldier and a hero." 




(' O L O N K J, 15 RYAN T 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 241 



COLONEL BRYANT. 

Col. Julian E. Bryant was born at Princeton, 111., Novem- 
ber 9, 1836. He was the second son of Arthur Bryant, who 
emigrated from Massachusetts to Illinois in 1830, and was one 
of the earliest settlers in Bureau county. 

He had no other facilities for acquiring an education than 
those afforded by the schools in that locality. From early 
boyhood he showed an unusual taste and talent for drawing ; 
and while at school took lessons in drawing and painting, which 
he practised in leisure hours under circumstances not the most 
favorable. At the age of twenty-one, he determined to qualify 
himself for the profession of an artist ; and in the fall of 1857 
went to New York, where he remained until the next summer, 
studying and sketching from nature in the vicinity. After 
pursuing his studies for about a year at Princeton, he went in 
1859 to Bloomington, and was for sometime connected with 
the Normal School of Illinois as instructor of drawing. He 
afterwards took apartments in the city, and painted several 
large landscapes for the Natural History Society, which now 
adorn its rooms. He also executed many other pieces, which 
are scattered over the country. Some of his paintings are 
quite fine, and gave assurance of future eminence in their 
author as an artist. 

In the summer of 1861, Col. Bryant, together with Major 
Elliott of Princeton, raised Co. E of the 33d Regiment Illinois 
Volunteers, and was elected 2d Lieutenant of that company. 
In June, 1862, he was promoted to the 1st Lieutenancy. His 
first year of service was spent in Missouri and Arkansas. In 
the march of Gen. Curtis* army through Arkansas to Helena 
on the Mississippi river, he was engaged in the battle of Bayou 
Cache, where Col. C. E. Hovey, with less than 300 men, routed 
a troop of 3000 Texan cavalry and Arkansian conscripts — a 
battle of no great importance, but deserving of notice for the 



242 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

disparity of numbers in the forces engaged. Our troops buried 
117 dead rebels on the field. 

In the fall of 1862 he was detailed on the staff of Gen. C. E. 
Hovey, and while holding that position was present at the un- 
successful attack of Sherman upon Vicksburg, and soon after, 
at the storming and capture of Arkansas Post. 

Early in 1863 he was appointed Major of the 1st Regiment 
Mississippi Infantry, which afterwards took the name of the 
51st U. S. Infantry, (colored,) and entered actively upon the 
business of enlisting, organizing and disciplining the blacks for 
soldiers. He was engaged in the bloody fight of Milliken's 
Bend, and was conspicuous for his gallantry and energy in 
rallying and leading on the troops after they had been driven 
to the brink of the river. As an illustration of the desperate 
character of this battle, it maybe stated that many of the blacks, 
although wounded, still continued to fight. One, particularly 
noticed by Col. Bryant, had keen shot through the jaAv. When 
our troops were forced to the water's edge, he washed away the 
blood, and with his jaw shattered and hanging loose resumed his 
place in the ranks and fought like a tiger. 

In the fall of 1863 he was promoted to the rank of Lieuten- 
ant Colonel. For nearly a year he was stationed at Goodrich's 
Landing and Lake Providence, making occasional expeditions 
into the country around, and engaged in frequent conflicts with 
rebel troops and guerrillas. 

In September, 1864, he was commissioned as Colonel of the 
46th Regiment U. S. Infantry, (colored,) its former commander 
having resigned. This regiment was composed of excellent 
material, but badly disciplined, and considered notoriously the 
" hardest" regiment in the department. By his energy and 
skill he soon brought it into a state of discipline and efiiciency, 
which received the unqualified approbation of his superior ofii- 
cers. While in command of the 46th, he was successively 
stationed at Vicksburg, Memphis and New Orleans. In the 
beginning of May, 1865, he was ordered to Brazos Santiago, 
Texas, to relieve a regiment that had been sometime stationed 
there. On the 14th of May, three days after his arrival, he 
was drowned while bathing in the Gulf of Mexico. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 243 

Gifted with fine talents and imagination — enterprising, in- 
dustrious and persevering — cultivated and refined in mind and 
manners, — Col. Bryant was distinguished as a young man of 
great promise among the many who went from Northern Illinois 
to the waf. In all the relations of life his principles and con- 
duct were pure and upright ; and it is no slight consolation to 
his bereaved friends to know, that amid the trials and tempta- 
tions of a military life, he retained all his purity and force of 
character. He raised himself from the rank of 2d Lieutenant 
to that of Colonel solely by his own merit, without assista,nce 
from the influence of any one. Among the ofiicers of the 33d 
Illinois he was accounted one of the bravest and best. Cool, 
prompt and resolute, his presence of mind never forsook him in 
time of danger. Although engaged in many desperate conflicts 
and often narrowly escaping, he was never seriously wounded. 
He possessed a hardy and enduring constitution, which enabled 
him to withstand, with almost entire impunity, the fatigue and 
exposure of long marches and the miasm of Mississippi swamps. 
After passing unharmed through almost four years of hardship 
and danger, he was struck down when the prospect of safe 
return to the loved ones at home seemed near and flattering. 
About three months before his death he tendered his resigna- 
tion, but it was not accepted. 

Col, Bryant was greatly beloved both by his soldiers and 
brother officers. One of the latter, writing from Mobile, speaks 
thus of him : 

Never before, it seems to me, did so young an oflRcer gain the love and 
respect of army associates in the degree that was felt for him. Not only his 
superiors and equals in rank, but also his subordinate officers — all spoke of 
him at all times with the highest praise; all deplore his loss as that of a warm 
personal friend. 

Another writes : 

Truly he was one of earth's noblemen. 

"None knew him but to love him, 
Or named him but to praise." 

He was a good and dutiful son, a tender and afiectionate 
brother, a kind and sympathizing friend, a true Christian, and 
a brave and loyal soldier. 



244 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

The following resolutions show the estimation in which Col. 
Bryant was held in the regiment which he commanded. Reso- 
lutions of similar character were passed by the officers of the 
51st Colored Regiment, with which he was formerly connected. 

At a meeting of the officers of the 46th U. S. Colored Infantry, held in 
their camp at Brazos Santiago, Texas, May 15th, 1865, Lieut. Col. Will Lyon 
was called to the chair, and Asst. Surgeon James H. Bennett chosen Secre- 
tary. A committee, consisting of Captain M. M. Kingsbury, Adjutant B. F. 
Hudson and 2d Lieut. Thomas Y. Smith, were appointed to draft a series of 
resolutions. The following preamble and resolutions were adopted: 

"Whereas, It hath pleased Almighty God to call from our midst our esteemed and be- 
loved commander, Col, Julian E. Bryant; therefore, 

liesolvec/, That Col, J. E. Bryant, by his strict impartiality, his promptness and decision 
as an officer, and his valor in the field, won our highest respect and esteem, and by his 
brilliant qualities as a scholar, and the many traits that distinguished him as a gentleman, 
our warmest friendship and love. 

Resolved, That in view of his untimely fate — cut off in the very flower of his manhood — 
snatched from the field of glory in which his talents had already marked him pre-eminent 
— taken in an instant from the position of responsibility which he occupied in respect to 
the regiment, — we do deeply feel his loss, and realize that the energies of the entire regi- 
ment are paralyzed by the removal of its chief. 

Resolved, That he, having, by his affability and gentlemanliness, gained our warmest 
friendship and love, we do most sincerely mourn his departure from among us, as the loss 
of a dear friend and cherished companion. 

Resolved, That the Government has in him lost a brave, efficient officer and a true and 
unflinching patriot, whose great aim was his country's glory, and whose life was freely 
placed at her disposal. 

Resolved, That we extend to his bereaved family our deepest sympathy in the hour of 

their affliction, and that we transmit to them a copy of these resolutions. 

W. LYON, President. 
James H. Bennett, Secretary. 



MARTYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 245 



LIEUTENANT STEWART. 

Lieut. Alexander Stewart, third son of Alexander and 
Margaret Stewart, was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on the ITtli 
day of December, 1831. His father enjoyed civic honors, and 
being the most extensive thread manufacturer in BridgetoTi, 
near Glasgow, he was thus enabled to' afford his offspring the 
opportunities of a good education, which Alexander acquired in 
early boyhood. Subsequently, he was apprenticed to a silk 
mercer in London, where he remained four years, when he 
took a dislike to the business, and forsook it for a more con- 
genial employment. He next entered the mercantile house of 
Messrs. J. & W. Campbell, of Glasgow — a firm whose business 
connections permeated the whole civilized world. 

Lieut. Stewart immigrated to this country in 1852, and for 
some time resided in the city of New York. While there, he 
married Miss Sarah Ann Clark, and soon after, moved to the 
city of Chicago, where he commenced business with his brother, 
John, as a Avholesale grocer. 

The St. Andrew's Society of Illinois claimed him as an hon- 
ored officer, during the years 1859-60, and his zeal in discharg- 
ing the onerous duties of his position reflected his estimation of 
the benefits of association in relieving the distressed belonging 
to the land of his nativity. 

When the first gun of the rebellion startled the nation, Lieut. 
Stewart manifested a desire to raise his arm in defence of the 
Government, but owing to the limited number of troops that 
were called for or accepted by the authorities, he, like thousands 
of others who Avere ready to lay doAvn their lives for tlieir 
country, failed to find a place in the army. 

Early in December, 1862, an opportunity was offered him, 
which he gladly accepted, and he threw up his business for the 
purpose of raising volunteers for the 12th Illinois Cavalry — a 
regiment then recruiting at Camp Douglas. He devoted his 



246 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

entire time and available means to the work, and was liiglily 
successful. The nucleus of the regiment was only formed when 
it was ordered to Camp Butler, near Springfield, to complete 
its organization ; whereupon, the commanding officer — Colonel 
Arno Voss — recommended Lieut. Stewart for the position of 
Battalion Adjutant, to which place he was duly commissioned 
and mustered. 

The regiment was ordered to Virginia in June, 1862, where 
it participated in the battles of Darkesville, Harper's Ferry, 
Falling Waters, Aldie, Middlebury, Dumfries, and twenty other 
contests of greater or less importance, including Gettysburg, — 
in nearly all of Avliich Adjt. Stewart was engaged, and bore 
himself with credit. 

Not the least important event in the history of his regiment 
was the part it performed in the great cavalry expedition to- 
wards Richmond, known as the " Stoneman Raid," in April, 
1863. The 12th was detached from the cavalry corps for a 
special work for which it Avas known to be eminently fitted, 
and sent by the shortest route to the neighborhood of Rich- 
mond to cut Lee's communications in that direction, while the 
main body of the corps moved to the rear of the Confederate 
army, south of Chancellorsville. 

The regiment on this raid was under the command of Lieut. 
Col. Hasbrouck Davis, who, in the absence of the regimental 
Quartermaster, called Lieut. Stewart to perform the duties of 
that officer. Col. Davis knew well the nature of the arduous 
and difficult work before him, which was to approa'ch the rebel 
capital as near as circumstances would permit; to sever all 
railway connections, burn all important bridges, and capture or 
destroy all Confederate public property ; and having accom- 
plished which, he was to report with his command to the 
nearest Federal post or camp. The expedition was a success. 
The command met the enemy several times, but nowhere was it 
driven from its purpose. Several million dollars worth of pub- 
lic property was captured or destroyed ; all railroad connections 
Avere cut and bridges burned ; besides, many prisoners were 
secured, and much valuable information in regard to the enemy 
was gained. In all this work, Lieut. Stewart did efficient and 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 247 

needful service, and displayed a thorough knowledge of all 
things appertaining to the Quartermaster's department. 

The 12th Cavalry Avas the first to return to Illinois to reor- 
ganize as a veteran regiment. It was thus favored in view of 
its glorious record in the field, as well as on account of its 
depleted ranks. 

Soon after the return of the regiment to Chicago, and during 
its reorganization, Lieut. Stewart was detached, at the request 
of the mustering and disbursing officer of the post, to take 
charge of the Quartermaster's department of the recruiting 
rendezvous of Northern Illinois, and when the regiment again 
went to the field, he was still retained. 

In this new position an immense amount of labor devolved 
upon him, mentally as well as physically. It was no mere 
honorary or nominal position, surrounded by a retinue of assis- 
tants, for he conducted the whole duties unaided save by one 
clerk, whom he paid from his own salary. While thus em- 
ployed, the eifects of his long exposure and hardship in the 
field became manifest in the rapid decline of his health; but he 
labored on, apparently forgetful of his own interests, until he 
was conquered by disease. He died, after a brief confinement 
to his bed, on the 9th of April, 1864, lea^dng a wife, a little 
son, and a multitude of friends, to mourn their irreparable loss. 

His remains lie in Rosehill Cemetery, where he was buried 
with military honors and the imposing rites of the Masonic 
fraternity, of which he was an active and esteemed member. 

Hands fraternal took liim home 
To where the weary masons lie. 



248 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



CAPTAIN RUTISHAUSER. 

Capt. Karl A. Rutisiiauser was born in the canton of 
Thurgau, Switzei-land, on the 16th of February, 1840. He 
received hib education in the canton school at Frauenfeld, 
where he applied himself to the study of medicine. After 
emigrating to this country, he entered the Humboldt Institute 
at St. Louis, where he graduatc-d and obtained his diploma as 
Doctor of Medicine. While in that institution, the rebellion 
broke out, and he entered the ranks first formed at St. Louis. 
Having enjoyed the benefits of a military education, which all 
students in Switzerland possess, he was soon promoted to a 
Lieutenancy in Shuttner's Regiment, and acted as Adjutant 
during the three months' service; after which, he was appointed 
as Surgeon at Rolla, Mo., under orders of Gen. Sigel. 

His anxiety to fight the traitors, and to protect the Govern- 
ment of the United- States — impelled naturally by an inborn 
love of freedom and hatred of slavery inherited by the natives 
of the land of Tell — induced him to enlist again as a private, 
on the 17th of September, 1861, in a company formed at 
Somonauk, 111., and on tlie 25th of December, he was mustered 
in for three years at Camp Douglas, Chicago, as Captain of 
Co. E of the 58th Regiment Illinois A^olunteer Infantry, in 
which his father, Isaac Rutisiiauser, Avas then appointed Lieu- 
tenant Colonel. 

The 58th left camp on the 11th of February, 1862, before it 
had been thoroughly organized, and without the necessary drill, 
for Cairo, when it was ordered to Fort Donelson, and on the 
14th of February, the regiment was on the battle-ground at 
the fort. Capt. Rutishauser, with his command, was immedi- 
ately detailed for skirmish duty, which was said to be, in con- 
sideration of lack of drill, very well performed. On the 15tli, 
the regiment was ordered to mount the so-called bloody hill, 
when it was received with a heavy fire of batteries in ambush. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 249 

Bj his courageous example, lie encouraged his men and ma- 
terially aided his father in saving the regiment from destruction. 

On the 6th of April, 1862, when the army was surprised at 
Pittsburg Landing, he was successful in providing his company 
with better firearms, which he distributed to them while in 
line of battle and in action. He fought valiantly throughout 
the whole day, until half-past 5 o'clock, when the enemy gained 
advantages on the right and left wings of the line of battle, and 
the 58th was then surrounded and taken prisoners. In this on- 
set. Captain Rutishauser was wounded by a ball entering the 
skull, which brought him to the ground. His knowledge of 
the medical art persuaded him of his hopeless condition ; but 
he nevertheless kept up a strong and manly disposition, so 
that, when visited by his father, who was also wounded, he said : 
"Father, console yourself; you have yet children at home who 
love you, and I die willingly. I die with honor." After which, 
he tore the straps from his shoulders, and with his cap, pierced 
through by the fatal lead, handed them over to his father, with 
the wish that they might be preserved and taken home to his 
friends. The interview was short, and ended in Lieut. Col. 
Rutishauser being marched to the rear; afterwards suffering 
during long, weary months in Southern prisons without any 
knowledge of the condition of his lamented son. 

After reinforcements had reached Pittsburg Landing, on the 
7th April, the enemy was driven back. Capt. Rutishauser was 
then taken from the field and carried on board a steamer for 
St. Louis, where he was cared for by his former teacher and 
friend, Dr. Hammer, Director of the Humboldt Institute. The 
tedious delay of ten days hi reaching St. Lotiis had a very 
depressing effect on his condition, and with untold agony he 
yielded up his young life as a sacrifice on the altar of duty 
and patriotism, on the 18th of May, 1862. His remains were, 
with appropriate ceremony, interred in the St. Louis cemetery 
of the Holy Ghost. 



16 



250 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 



SERGEANT HUDSON. 

Sergt. Oscar M. Hudson, the only child of James and Maria 
Hudson, was born in Marlow, Cheshire co., N. H., in the year 
1843. His parents emigrated to Illinois in 1851. 

When the rebellion broke out, and a call made for 75,000 
men, he enlisted in the 20th Regiment Illinois Volunteers — 
Col. C. C. Marsh commanding, which was quartered at Joliet. 
When the regiment was mustered in for three years, he was 
discharged on account of ill health. He remained at home, 
however, but a short time before he went forth a second time, 
in December, 1861, and enlisted in the 1st Battalion of the 
"Yates Sharpshooters," when he was appointed Sergeant. He 
was at the battle of New Madrid, under Gen. Pope, and at Cor- 
inth, Miss. While there, encamped in a swamp, he contracted a 
disease which carried him to his grave, on the 30th August, 1862. 

Oscar was a youth of fine talents and personal worth — a brave 
soldier boy, beloved by all his comrades. 



CORPORAL HEGANS. 

Corp. Nelson Hegans, son of Michael and Susan Hegans, was 
born in Johnson co., Ind., in 1839. He moved, with his mother, 
from there to Jersey co.. 111., in 1851 ; and when the war broke 
out, like thousands of our heroes, the call for volunteers found 
him at the plow. Feeling it was his duty to give all the aid he 
could in suppressing the rebellion, he enlisted at Carrollton, 
Greene co., in Co. C, 61st Regiment Illinois Volunteers — Col. 
Pry. He was soon elected Corporal, and his Captain appointed 
him Color Guard. One month after the regiment was organized, 
they loft for Tennessee, and were engaged at the battle of Pitts- 
burg Landing, where Corp. Hegans was wounded. He was 
taken from the field and sent to the hospital at Savanna, where 
he expired on the 12th of April, 1862. 




CAPTAIN LESTKR. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 251 



CAPTAIN LESTER. 

Capt. Thomas T. Lester, son of William and Jane Lester, 
was born on the 13th of July, 1839, in the town of Howden, 
Yorkshire, England, a city somewhat famous for its horse- 
market. Thomas, with his parents, left their native shores of 
Old England on the 27th of September, 1853, to try their 
fortunes in the West, and in due time arrived in Chicago, when 
he engaged with Thos. George & Co. to learn the business of 
brassfounding. He proved a competent workman, being guided 
and thoroughly instructed by his foreman, Alex. Barnet, in all, 
the intricacies of the trade. After remaining four years, during 
which his health Avas slightly impaired, he concluded on chang- 
ing his employment for something more congenial. He then 
became a dry goods clerk in the store of W. R. Wood & Co., 
and continued there until he responded with his services to his 
adopted country's call for defenders. 

Upon the first indications that the South had determinedly 
resolved to destroy the Union, and that the Constitution of the 
United States was seriously in danger of being made a reproach 
and a byword among the nations, with no less enthusiasm than 
the sternest patriot whose grandsire had fought in the revolu- 
tionary war, he buckled on his armor to go forth in their defense. 
Before the boom of the first gun was heard, he seemed to have 
had a premonition that the great issue could only be settled by 
the arbitrament of the sword, and with this idea, he connected 
himself with one of the independent companies of the city — the 
Anderson Rifles — to qualify himself should the emergency arise. 
When the call came, he was one of the number selected by the 
Union Defence Committee, for his soldierly qualities and gentle- 
manly bearing, to officer a regiment being raised under their 
auspices, and known as the Chicago Legion ; better recognized 
now, however, both to friend and foe, as the 51st IllinoisVeteran 
Volunteers. The position assigned to him was 2d Lieutenant of 



252 MARTYRS AND HEROES OP ILLINOIS. 

Co. E, but upon an election of oflBcers in the company, he "was 
unanimously chosen 1st Lieutenant. 

The regiment left Camp Douglas for active service on the 
14th of February, 1862, and arrived at Cairo, when they were 
assigned to Ge'n. Paine's Division. On the 10th March, they 
joined Gen. Pope's Army at New Madrid, Mo. The arrival of 
the division settled the fate of that rebel stronghold ; for, after 
throwing up works and mounting guns within seven hundi'ed 
yards of the fort, and opening upon the astonished foe with 
such an effective fire, they had only to move in the following 
morning and occupy the formidable fortress which the enemy 
had abandoned during the night in a terrible rain storm. In- 
deed, so hastily was the movement made, that candles were left 
burning ; champagne, half drunk, at one of their tables, and 
the corpse of one of their officers in a coffin unburied. 

The 51st, 10th, 16th and 22d Regiments Illinois Volunteers, 
under command of Gen. Paine, were the first to cross the Mis- 
sissippi to the Tennessee shore, and march on Tiptoriville, to 
head off the rebels who were trying to escape from Island No. 
10, and succeeded in capturing six thousand of them under 
Gen. McCall, besides all the heavy artillery and ordnance stores 
collected there to oppose our passage. This movement has been 
justly characterized by Gen. Halleck as one of the most bril- 
liant achievements of the war. On the 10th April, the regi- 
ment returned to New Madrid, and on the 14th moved with the 
remainder of Gen. Pope's Army down the river to Fort Pillow, 
which was bombarded for several days; but before any definite 
results Avere attained, they were ordered to join Gen. Halleck 
before Corinth, and arrived at Pittsburg Landing on the 21st, 
forming part of the grand advance under that General. From 
the 23d of April until the 29th of May, they were day and night 
upon the skirmish line, or supporting it. 

At the battle of Farmington, on the 9tli of May, the whole 
brigade, consisting of the 51st, 22d, 27th and 42d Regiments, 
narrowly escaped capture : only the cool courage of officers and 
men, under the generalship of John M. Palmer, saved them. 
They wei'e attacked by three rebel divisions, and for three 
hours successfully maintained their position. Lieut. Lester, 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 253 

commanding the color company upon this occasion, nobly won 
the esteem of his superior officers and the implicit confidence 
of his men by his coolness and presence of mind. 

After the evacuation of Corinth, on the 30th of May, the 
regiment was foremost in the pursuit of the fleeing rebels, going 
as far as Boonvillc ; then they returned and went into camp at 
Big Springs, Miss. 

Lieut. Lester, being recommended, received orders upon the 
9th of July to return to Illinois on recruiting service. On the 
21st the regimentmoved to Northern Alabama, and occupied 
the Memphis and Charleston Eailroad, from Courtland to De- 
catur. Upon Gen. Bragg's advance into Tennessee and Ken- 
tucky, the division, now commanded by Gen. Palmer, were 
compelled to retreat in the direction of Nashville, where they 
arrived on the 11th September, to find themselves with Gen. 
Negley's Division isolated and cut off from communications 
with the north. 

As soon as connections were again opened by Gen. Rose- 
erans, Lieut. Lester joined his command with a reinforcement 
of sixty recruits for the regiment, more in number than the 
combined results of all other detailed officers from the brigade. 
The brigade was now transferred to Gen. Sheridan's Division, 
when, shortly after, the memorable battle of Stone River was 
fought. The great loss in officers again placed Lieut. Lester 
in command of his company. 

The regiment remained here until sufficient rations were got 
up and such works erected as to make the necessity of another 
evacuation of- the State out of the question ; and, on the 21th 
of June, again the army of the Cimi]>erland moved out to meet 
the enemy. The result was the brilliant campaign in which 
Gen. Rosecrans forced Gen. Bragg successively from all of his 
strategic and fortified positions — Shelbyville, Tullahoma and 
Bridgeport, across the Tennessee River — thus freeing the State 
of Tennessee of all rebels in arms. Then the army rested until 
the 2d of September, when Georgia was first made to feel the 
terrible results of rebellion. Through the battle of Chickamau- 
ga, that fearful carnage of life ; through the battle of Mission 
Ridge, fighting in the clouds, Lieut. Lester passes unscathed, 



254 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

winning new laurels for deeds of daring, and survives the untold 
hardships of that march to the relief of Burnside in East Ten- 
nessee, a campaign the most severe that an armj has witnessed 
during the rebellion — made bj men without shoes, tents or 
blankets in midwinter. 

Lieut. Lester, in consideration of well-earned services, re- 
ceived his commission, on the 6th of October, 1863, as Captain 
of Co. K, and was second in command of the 51st. He re- 
enlisted with his regiment for three years more, or during the 
war — until the success of the cause Avhich induced him to sacri- 
fice the social comforts and the society of loved ones at home 
was complete. 

While in Chicago on furlough, Capt. Lester, with a number 
of other officers, entertained Gen. Sheridan in the Sherman 
House, who was on his way to command the Army of the 
Shenandoah. He afterwards expressed a high opinion of that 
brave General, and said that wherever he lifted the sword he 
would give telling blows. How true his judgment has been 
proved. 

The regiment returned from their veteran leave of absence 
^ in time to advance with Gen. Sherman in the great campaign 
which terminated in the capture of Atlanta ; but among the 
first of that series of bloody scenes at Resaca,.on the 14th of 
May, in the front of battle Capt. Lester fell, pierced through 
the head by a rebel bullet — here ending a life of much promise 
— one of the noblest sacrifices received upon our country's altar. 

Before the engagement, Capt. Lester, in conversation with a 
brother officer, Lieut. Hills, told him that the night before he 
had a presentiment of a soldier's fate. He then gave him his 
brother's address in Chicago, with other requests as to his 
effects, and took his place in the regiment before the fatal ball 
sped on its course. We append an extract of Lieut. Hill's 
letter, showing the movements of the regiment at the battle of 
Resaca and the manner of our hero's death : 

The enemy had evacuated Dalton, aud we were pressing their rear very 
closely, seven miles from that place. We found them strongly intrenched 
in front of Resaca. Before the battle commenced on the morning of the 14th, 
our brigade halted to receive the news of Graut's victory over Lee in Yirginia. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 255 

Of course, all of us felt happy, but none more so than your brother. He 
seemed to be in ecstasies. In less than three hours he was dead. I will give 
you the particulars. The 23d Corps had made a charge on the rebel works, 
and drove them from their first line. We were ordered in to relieve them. 
Marched across an open field, (under a heavy shower of shell and canister,) 
where many of the regiment were wounded. We gained the woods, and were 
ordered to relieve some regiments on the right, who were being hard pressed 
and had no ammunition. To the right we went. The regiment was formed 
in a hollow, and opened a hot fire on the enemy, who had fallen back to their 
second line of works. We had remained there about two hours, when I was 
called upon by Lieut. Grey, of our regiment, who silently pointed to the body 
of my brave Captain. 1 looked at him, and at first could hardly realize that 
he who had been so merry a few hours previous was dead. I went to the 
body; that was no time for regrets. It pained me to see him dead, so young, 
and full of ambition and hope. ****** 

We, as a company, had only been acquainted with him as a man for the 
short space of nine days; but during that time, he was loved and respected 
both as an officer and a gentleman. As for myself, he was all that I could 
desire for a social companion. 

The following letter to Capt. Lester's brother, from his su- 
perior officer, indicates a warm and feeling heart : 

Headquarters 51st Illinois Infantry, ) 

Kenesaw Mountain, Ga., June 25th, 1864. ^ 

Dear Sir, — I have had it on my mind to write you ever since the death of 
your brother on the 14th of May. Constant work in the field has left me no 
opportunity to do so until now. 

You will not doubt that Capt. Lester's brother officers esteemed his gener- 
ous and manly qualities at their full worth, nor that they mourn his sudden 
and early death. You have the sympathy of all hiscompanions, and I wish, 
as the commanding officer of the regiment, to express to Capt. Lester's family 
and friends their sorrow and sympathy. 

Your brother earned our esteem by his gallant conduct on various fields, 
and he died in the front of battle while heading and directing his men. He 
had few superiors as an officer, and as a companion he was genial and kind. 

We shall cherish his memory as one of the most gallant of our number. 
With much esteem, yours, etc., 

L. P. Bradley, 
Col. 61st Illinois. 

His loss was deeply felt and mourned by all who knew him, 
for his life in the army had been one of work. Never absent 
from his command except when ordered — never in the hospital 
— his comrades saw no dangers but what he cheerfully shared. 



256 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

Joined to a pleasing exterior, he possessed in a remarkable 
degree the power of interesting and pleasing all with whom he 
was thrown in contact. Straiglitforward and manly in all his 
dealings — honorable as a soldier knows honor — generous and 
unselfish to a fault ; with ideas of friendf^hip that made no 
sacrifice too great for those he loved — always prompt in the 
discharge of his duty, — he was, in every sense, the beau ideal 
of a soldier, and has left behind him from a soldier's grave a 
character that we all might emulate, that we all should envy. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 257 



PHIVATES. 



CHARLES H. CONNER. 

Private Conner was born in Maine, Cook county, Illi- 
nois, on the 18th of August, 1840. Previous to the breaking 
out of the rebellion, he was engaged in farming. When the 
news came flashing over the wires of the terrible disaster to our 
army at Bull Run, he, with thousands of other brave men, 
rushed to the country's rescue. He joined Co. F, 39tli Illinois 
Volunteers (Yates Phalanx) during the latter part of August, 
1861, and served his first three years with the "Army of the 
Potomac," after which he re-enlisted as a veteran. 

In writing home in regard to the course he had taken, 
he said : 

I have made up my mind that my country needs me, and I shall fight till 
the flag again floats over every inch of American soil. 

He bore an active part in the engagements before Petersburg, 
during August, 1864, and was taken prisoner on the 16th, in a 
corn-field, by three rebels, the only capture from the 39th on 
that occasion. He with others were first sent to Belle Island, 
and immediately put on short allowance. Afterwards they were 
removed to Saulsbury, N. C. Here their sufferings were terrible, 
and equalled only by those of the Andersonville prisoners. Food, 
consisting of corn and cobs ground together, which was the allow- 
ance for one day, was consumed at one meal. They possessed 
scarcely clothing enough to cover their nakedness, and even this 
was alive with vermin. Still hardly a complaint escaped them, 
until the mail carrier announced the arrival of letters for the 
prisoners. Those who possessed enough to pay the postage were 
indeed happy, while others, who were unable to pay, saw those 
messages of love torn in strips and scattered to the wind. 

It was then that strong men, who had never flinched on the 
battle-field, sobbed like children, Avhile others muttered their 
curses. The day of retribution or relief to them seemed afar off. 



258 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

He was exchanged early in March, 1865, after an imprison- 
ment of seven months ; but he was so reduced by exposure and 
starvation, that he died, March 15th, 1865, in the hospital at 
Annapolis, Maryland. 

Instead of the glad tidings of returning home, his friends 
heard of his sudden decease. An only brother went to Anna- 
polis, where he got his body embalmed, and brought it under 
his mother's roof, when, after solemn funeral services, his re- 
mains were laid to rest beneath the waving willow in the family 
burying ground. 



Some of the more fortunate of the prisoners, on being ex- 
changed and landed in Maryland, set to work and embodied 
their tale of suffering in verse, a copy of which is appended. It 
is entitled "The Song of Union Prisoners from Dixie's Sunny 
Land." 

Air—" Twenty Years Ago." 

Dcav friends and fellow-soldiers brave, come listen to our song 
About the rebel prisons and our sojourn there so long; 
Yet our wretched state and hardships great no one can understand, 
But those who hare endured this fate in Dixie's sunny land. 

When captured by the chivalry (?) they stripped us to the skin, 
But failed to give us back again the value of a pin, 
Except some lousy rags of gray, discarded by their band ; 
And thus commenced our prison life in Dixie's sunny land. 

With a host of guards surrounding us, each with a loaded gun. 
We were stationed in an open plain, exposed to rain and sun ; 
No tent or tree to shelter us, we lay upon the sand — 
Thus side by side great numbers died in Dixie's sunny land. 

This was the daily "bill of fare" in that secesh saloon — 

No sugar, tea or coifee there, at morning, night or noon ; 

But "a pint of meal, ground cob and all," was serv'd to ev'ry man, 

And for want of fire we ate it raw in Dixie's sunny land. 

We were by these poor rations soon reduced to skin and bone, 
A lingering starvation — worse than death ! you can but own. 
There hundreds lay, both night and day, by far too weak to stand. 
Till death relieved their suiferings in Dixie's sunny land. 

We poor survivors oft were tried by many a threat and bribe. 
To desert our glorious " Union cause," and join the rebel tribe ; 



MARTYKS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 259 

Thoiigli fain were we to leare the place, we let them understand 
"We'd rathei" die than disgrace our flag!" in Dixie's sunny land. 

Tlius dreary days and nights roll'd by — yes, weeks and months untold, 
Until that happy time arrived when we were all paroled ; 
We landed at Annapolis, a wretched looking Tband, 
But glad to be alive and free from Dixie's sunny land. 

With many — as with Charles H. Conner — their living free- 
dom was to die- 



NOAH MITCHEL. 

Lieut. LufF, of the 12th Illinois Cavalry, writes ; 

Heapqrs. 1st Cav. Dit. Army of the Potomac, > 
Camp near Catlett's Station, Va., 6th Sept., 1863. ^ 

Noah Mitchel was the first who fell of the brave men whom I have the 
honor to command. On the 7th day of September, 1862, the company, under 
Capt. Grosvenor, charged upon 280 of Ashby's Cavalry at the village of 
Darksville, Va. Mitchel was foremost in the charge, and made a dashing 
and daring attempt to capture' the rebel colors. "When he had nearly accom- 
plished his object, and his hand was near the prize, he received his mortal 
wound — a rifle bullet through the body. I visited him the next day. He 
was pale, and the mark of death was on his brow. I spoke of his gallant 
conduct, and expressed my sorrow at his doom. He replied that "he had done 
only his duty, and met his fate without murmuring." As he had lived a brave 
soldier, he suffered as a true patriot. He was removed to Harper's Ferry, 
where he died on the 13th, and was buried during the memorable bombard- 
ment before the surrender of that place by Col. Miles. 



ABRAM WEAVER. 



Private Weaver, the subject of this sketch, was born *in 
Sodus,' Wayne county, N. Y., on the 30th October, 1839. He 
was the third son of Henry and Helena Weaver, and lived with 
his parents in Sodus until 1856, Avhen the family moved to 
Loda, Iroquois co., Illinois. Here he principally followed the 
plow up to the time of his enlistment. 



260 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

At the first call for men to suppress tlie rebellion, he was 
anxious to ofier his aid, but yielding to the solicitations of his 
aged parents, he remained with them until the call for " six 
hundred thousand more," when they finally yielded to his im- 
portunities, and, with his younger brother, he enlisted in the 
88t"h (2d Board of Trade) Regiment Illinois Volunteers, on the 
1st of August, 1862. He passed safely through the battle of 
Perryville ; endured nobly and without a murmur the fatigue of 
forced marches, and was ready to sacrifice comfort, health and 
even his life (so full of promise) upon the altar of the country 
he loved so well. At last, we find him with his regiment at 
Murfreesboro, where, on the 30th of December, 1862, he was 
the first of his company to fall, being shot through the heart 
by the unerring aim of a rebel sharpshooter. 

There are none among the many thousands who enlisted in 
the volunteer service that did so with purer or more patriotic 
motives than Abram Weaver. He went forth with the blessing 
of pious parents and the best wishes of all with whom he" asso- 
ciated. He performed faithfully all the duties of a soldier, 
and at last fell at his post with his armor on. The soft 
Southern winds blow over his lonely grave, and fond hearts 
are left to deplore their loss. 



STEPHEN C. KENNEY. 

Private Kenney was born in the town of Livermore, Oxford 
county, Maine, on the 16th September, 1831; enlisted in the 
100th Regiment Illinois Volunteers, Co. E, Capt. Bartlett, on 
the 25th September, 1862. He served under Gen. Buell, in the 
Kentucky campaign ; was present at the battle of Stone River, 
and while standing guard over a pile of knapsacks, he was seized 
with pleurisy and inflammation of the lungs. His comrades 
placed him under an open tent, where he lay in great distress 
until the conflict was over. He was then taken to Nashville, 
where he died on the 7th of January, 1863, and was buried in 
the Soldiers' Cemetery at that place. 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 261 



JONATHAN D. BLANCHARD. 

Private Blanchard was born in Rutland, Rutland county, 
Vermont, in the year 1840, and with his parents emigrated to 
Illinois in 1844, where he lived until the second year of the 
rebellion, Avhen he enlisted in the 100th Regiment Illinois 
Volunteers (Col. Bartleson) on the 8th of August, 1862. The 
regiment left Joliet on the 2d of September for Louisville, Ky., 
where, under Gen. Buell, the duty of marching bore hard upon 
some of the untried prairie boys of the West, but they endured 
unflinchingly. About the 1st of December, they moved to 
Nashville, Tenn., where he was seized with a painful sickness, 
during which he was never heard to complain, but lay on his 
pallet of straw, and lingered on until the 7th of February, 1863, 
when he bade adieu to all earthly strife. 



FERDINAND F. FOWLER. 

Private F. F. Fowler, eldest son of Henry B. and Esther 
D. Fowler, was born on the 5th September, 1841, in the town 
of Naperville, DuPage county, Illinois. 

Reared amid the peaceful tranquillity of a country home, his 
feet trained beneath its halloAved influence to walk in virtue's 
ways, he had but just entered iT^pon the threshold of a promising 
manhood when the cry of "to arms" broke upon the startled 
ear of the Noi'th. Inheriting a frail constitution, and never 
strong of limb or robust of body, yet, from the first outbreak of 
the rebellion, he burned with patriotic ardor to go forth in de- 
fence of his country and his country's laws. Restrained from 
this for a time by the advice of physicians and the counsel of 
friends, neverth<:?less he watched with nervous anxiety the prog- 
ress of the war. At length the trumpet call for " six hundred 
thousand more" rang out in clarion tones over the land, which 
told to every patriot heart of liberty's necessity. Then, forget- 
ful of self, and impelled by a love of country which could no 



262 MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 

longer brook restraint, he enlisted on the 20th of August, 1862, 
in Co. D, 105th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and 
eagerly marched to the rescue. Thenceforth he sustained the 
fatigue and encountered the hardships incident to an active 
campaign until prolonged ill-health compelled him to leave the 
ranks and accept the tendered position of Captain's Clerk. 
Here winning the respect of both officers and men by his eheer- 
ful assiduity, he ably and faithfully discharged the duties of the 
post up to 1st February, 1863, when he was entirely prostrated 
by pneumonia. From this attack he partially recovered, but 
alas ! only to find himself hopelessly wrestling with that dread 
foe, the phthisis. It being painfully evident to all that he was 
beyond the reach of human skill, the Regimental Surgeon pro- 
cured him an honorable discharge from the service. Summoning 
all his remaining strength to the eifort, and animated with the 
hope of again meeting the loved ones at home, on the 12th of 
March he left the hospital in Gallatin, Tenn., with tottering 
limbs and emaciated form, and on the 14th arrived at the resi- 
dence of his father in Warrensviile, where he lingered with 
labored breath until the 19th March, 1863, when he departed 
for that better country " where the wicked cease from troubling 
and the weai-y are at rest." 



DANIEL 11. P^WLER. 

Private D. H. Fowler, younger and only brother of the sub- 
ject of the foregoing sketch, was born on the 11th April, 1844, 
in the town of Naperville, DuPage county, Illinois. 

Young in years, but mature in thought and action, he was a 
noble specimen of that energetic, high-toned manhood which 
nowhere on earth finds a more congenial soil or takes a readier 
root than in the breasts of the intelligent, self-reliant youth of 
the "Garden State," Hence, when in the autumn of 1862, the 
defeat of our arms seemed most imminent, actuated solely by 
patriotism — the noblest passion which can animate a man in the 



MARTYRS AND HEROES OF ILLINOIS. 263 

character of a citizen — he cheerfully resigned home, its ease 
and pleasures, for the toil, privation and danger of the tented 
field. Enlisting, August 5th, 1862, in Co. B, 105th Regiment 
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, he manfully marched to meet the 
embattled host of treason then flushed with victory and exultant 
with success. But while thus heroic in spirit, and willing to do 
and to dare for the right, his body soon proved unequal to the 
self-imposed task. Gradually sinking under, yet resolutely 
enduring the terrible vicissitudes inseparably connected with a 
soldier's life, at length, worn by exposure and enervated by 
disease, he was reluctantly forced to enter the hospital at Gal- 
latin, Tenn., where he soon after died, March 21st, 1863, just 
forty-one hours after the decease of his brother. 






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